Win them over
by aly3elf101
Summary: Make them fall in love with you before graduation and youll be rid of them for good...The bet seemed like an easy win for Sasuke and Neji, but there was always the risk of falling in love with the ones they hated. SasuNaru, NejiGaara, ShikaKiba Yaoi!
1. Annoyances

**So i really wanted to write a story for Naruto and this idea came to mind, so here it is!**

**Summary: Shikamaru was tired of his friends' complaining, so he thought of a simple way to solve the problem... Make a bet.**

**Warning: This will be a yaoi story! So if you don't like, turn back now. This is a NejixGaara, NarutoxSasuke and ShikamaruxKiba fic... other pairing might come out but that will be decided later.**

**Author's note: ...Please Review and tell me what you think! This is unbetaed so sorry for any spelling errors.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or its characters.**

**ENJOY**

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><p>It was a typical day at Sannin Highschool and the students were all waiting for their teacher, Mr. Hatake, to arrive. The room was loud; many students were talking to their friends and laughing. But one girl was quiet, she was sitting in her desk and two of her friends were giggling beside her. The girl looked very nervous and fidgety. Her hand tightened around a small envelope in her hand. One of the girls beside her stopped laughing and pushed her a bit. "Come on, Akaii, you can do it". The girl looked at her best friend.<p>

"Thanks Sadie" The other girl beside Akaii also stopped her laughter and added, " Besides, its not like you're the only girl whose confessed to one of those three. They're used to it and always accept you with a smile…" She trailed off as she went off to her fantasies. Akaii took a deep breath and Sadie decided to reassure her a bit more. " And who knows, Akaii, you might get lucky." The nervous girl nodded, a blush covering her cheeks.

The girl stood up, card in hand and walked towards the back of the class. She saw three guys talking to each other. She gulped, they were the most sought after guys in the school, and she walked towards the trio. One of them looked at her and she froze, his onyx eyes peering into her. Akaii gathered up her courage and held out the letter towards him with both her hands. "Sasuke-kun, I really like you, so, um… here"

Sasuke looked at the letter, held a small smile and took it. "Thank you, Akaii, will you be attending our basketball game? It would be nice to see you there"

She blushed "U-um, your welcome and of course I will, you're a great captain after all, Sasuke-kun." Sasuke hid a smirk that found its way to his face. "Great, then see you there" At this, the three boys went back to their conversation. Her blush deepened and she quickly turned around and walked to her seat, a soft smile on her face.

She sat down and her two friends returned to her side. "So how'd it go?"

Akaii looked at her best friend. "Well Sasuke-Kun is always so cool and aloof, so I was nervous. But he was so nice and he said he wanted me to see him in the game tonight, Sasuke-kun is the best." Her friends giggled, then Sadie decided to contradict. "Well, he's great but, Neji is the best, he's so perfect! He's been the president of every class he's ever been in. He's always really cool and his grades are flawless. Her other friend cut in "Well, Shikamaru is way smarter than both of them combined. He's been in, and won, all the intellectual competitions this school has ever had and he's so awesome when he casually corrects the teachers."

The three girls continued their hushed discussion until Mr. Hatake finally arrived. All the students sat down and looked towards their teacher. "Good morning students, sorry I'm late, I… had stuff to do"

Some students looked annoyed and others just sighed. Then the 12th grade math class began.

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><p><strong>Nejis POV<strong>

We were in the first class, waiting for Kakashi to arrive… like always. Shikamaru was sitting next to me looking more bored than usual and Sasuke was in front of him with a calm expression. Then he turned to us and asked us his usual question before a game. "So you guys coming to my basketball game tonight?"

Shikamaru looked at him "Is _he _playing?" We instantly knew whom he was talking about. Sasuke scowled "Unfortunately… He is the idiot co-captain, so he has to" Sasuke sighed with and irritated scowl on his face. "Whatever so you guys coming?" Shikamaru predictably said yes and then my best friends looked at me.

"Well, I'm going to be having a meeting with the student council after school so I cant come to the basketball game tonight, but good luck with Naruto, considering you two fight like every day, how did he even get in the basketball team?"

Sasuke frowned again "Well it's difficult for me to say this, but he is a really good basketball player-" Shikamaru cut in "Then why do you two have to argue so much?"

Sasuke sighed, " He disagrees with every single thing I say. It takes us hours to decide on game plans so we have to meet a lot, which only serves to irritate me more."

I looked at Sasuke with completely understanding eyes "Well at least you don't have to deal with a psycho red head who adores causing trouble for the council. He's the freaking vice-president and he makes every meeting the student council has, last hours. Since ALL the student council members have to agree with the decision for it to pass, no matter how small."

Shikamaru held a small frown " Well, it was very surprising when I asked principal Tsunade to show me his grades and he had them nearly perfect. Gaara was smarter than we thought. Tsunade told me that was why, when he asked to be the vice-president, she agreed."

' This just pisses me off ' I scowled at the memory of Gaara first entering the school council room with that stupid smirk on his face.

"Why would a guy like that ever want to join the Council? Its like Shikamaru joining the cheerleading team…" The three of us shuddered at the thought. Shikamaru turned to me, sarcasm written in his voice " Well thanks for that…"

Then we heard someone coming towards us. Sasuke was the first to look her way and about a second after he did, the girl shoved a card in his face. He stayed cool but we both knew that he had almost fallen out of his seat. I held in the laugh that threatened to come out. We watched the girl as she spoke "Sasuke-kun, I really like you, so, um… here". I was calm while I watched the usual fake smile we always put on for the girls. Shikamaru and I let them talk to each other and as soon as they finished, we got back to our conversation. Sasuke turned to Shikamaru and asked "so where were we?"

Shikamaru started to answer in a bored tone. "Hmm… Naruto's an idiot, Gaara's a psycho and-" I had to. "Shikamaru's a cheerleader?" The boy in question looked annoyed and Sasuke just smirked.

Shikamaru would have probably thought of a comeback but right then, the very late teacher walked in. "Good morning students, sorry I'm late, I… had stuff to do"

Both Sasuke and I looked annoyed while Shikamaru sighed. The classes started as they usually did.

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><p>The council meeting was just about to begin. After having attended school for most of the day, Neji just wanted to finish the stupid reunion as soon as possible. Though he knew <em>that<em> wouldn't happen. Every council member gathered in the room and had just gotten to their seats when Neji stood up.

"Were all here to discuss what color should be chosen for all the high school teams. Honestly, this meeting not of much importance, since the classes had decided on three colors that were fine and all we need to do is pick between the three." All the students nodded, except for one redhead who was sitting opposite of Neji.

"The colors are purple, green and red" The student secretary, Ino, stood up and handed a small box to the president. He raised an eyebrow at this and she spoke "Well, to decide this quickly, we could just do it the old fashioned way and have a vote." Neji nodded to that, the quicker the better. She took out some pieces of paper and handed one to everyone. "Just write what color you want"

At this the door opened silently to show Shikamaru who had been told to bring a box of supplies into the council room. He entered silently; Neji looked at him for a moment before continuing. All the students wrote a color and put it in the box. They were counted and the result pleased Neji to the fullest "Looks like its unanimous, the highschool division's new color is now purple." Most of the student council was surprised except for one who just stayed calm. They were overjoyed; usually it would take hours to decide something as simple as this. The happiness was short lived as the vice-president cleared his throat, a smirk on his lips.

"Actually, I'd like to change my vote… Red's better" The rest of the student council groaned, except for Neji who just glared intently at Gaara. Shikamaru sighed

' I'll be hearing about this one…... Damn'

And so started the hours of discussion for the student council…

While Neji's torture continued, Sasuke's had just begun. It was twenty minutes before the basketball game and Sasuke was warming up with the rest of the team. Shikamaru had already gotten there to support his friend and was watching the team. Sasuke stopped stretching and stood in front of the players. "Alright, so we decided to go with the game plan number-" A grinning blond cut him off "Lets go with another one…"

Sasuke froze, a scowl on his face as he slowly looked beside him. "Naruto… you had decided- with me - what our game plan should be, days ago."

The blond could've sworn he saw the raven's eyebrow twitch, but he thought nothing of it and replied. "I'm not feeling it anymore" If it was possible, Sasuke's frown deepened. The entire team sighed. Shikamaru was just irritated

' I'll be hearing about this one too…... Damn'

And so started another discussion between the great co captains…

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><p><strong>So there you have it, the first chapter of... *drumroll*... Win. them. over! Please review, they make me happy... constructive criticism gratefully accepted! XD<strong>


	2. The Bet

**Summary: Shikamaru was tired of his friends' complaining, so he thought of a simple way to solve the problem... Make a bet.**

**Warning: Yaoi story! So if you don't like, turn back now. This is a NejixGaara, NarutoxSasuke and ShikamaruxKiba fic.**

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><p>People looked away and made a path for the red head that walked the halls like he owned the school. He was on his way to the cafeteria to meet his best friends. Gaara's mischievous thoughts were being hidden completely by the serious expression on his face.<p>

The calm boy entered the extremely loud cafeteria and walked to his usual table ignoring the nervous glances that were sent his way. Gaara frowned

'So I accidentally punch a teacher once and now they think I'm a ticking time bomb or something…' the redhead smirked 'its not my fault he annoyed me and its not like I planned to knock him out… That was purely accidental'

His smirk grew as he sat at the table were his cheerful friends were arm-wrestling. Gaara watched as the battle went on, the blond was winning at first, like always.

Both boys looked determined and suddenly the brunette of the two pinned the other's fist and won the battle.

"Damn it!" the blond was furious while the other just grinned.

"Too bad Naruto, some people are just unbeatable!" Naruto looked at him annoyed "Whatever Kiba you got lucky!" The brunette laughed at Naruto's loss and usual comeback. He stopped his laughter to start the topic they all knew was coming. "So any progress on the bet?"

This caught Gaara's full interest and he smirked. He knew he'd win soon enough. The angry blonde's mood changed completely as he grinned and filled them in with a laugh.

"You should have seen that stupid duckass when I said I wanted to change the game plan because I wasn't feeling it anymore!" Naruto laughed some more

"That was so much fun and I'm sure he's gonna crack soon!" The blonde smiled and looked to the redhead with determination clear in his eyes.

"I'm so gonna win!" Gaara returned the look "Well, you should know, I won't be losing" His eyes showed his resolve "Girly boy almost cracked yesterday" He held in a chuckle at the memory of the humorous meeting. "Honestly, I expected him to. Considering, that after hours of arguing, we'd settled on red. And when I went to leave I told them 'on second thought, you're all right lets go with purple."

The memory of their hilarious reaction caused a real laugh to come out of the redhead and the blond joined in.

Kiba smiled, shaking his head in mock disapproval "You two are closet sadists aren't you. I'd expected it from Gaara but you too Naruto? Never pegged you for the type"

The blond stopped laughing and looked at Kiba with a huge smile.

"Well at least we didn't chicken out of the bet!" Kiba's eyes widened considerably, he'd tried explaining it to them many times already.

"I did not! Shikamaru's just so lazy, he doesn't do much and what he does do are those stupid competitions Tsunade sends him on! I'm not good at those at all! Plus I'm in the wrestling team 24/7 so I wouldn't have the time anyway…" His voice suddenly gained a soft tone "…Besides, the times I've talked to him, he's always been really nice… um in a boring way…"

Kiba pouted and crossed his arms in defense. Gaara coughed and both of his friends looked at him. He'd never really been one for talking too much so he looked at Kiba and said the one word he knew would do enough.

"…Denial"

Naruto laughed harder than ever and a lot of teasing from the over excited blonde came soon after. They ate their lunch and talked until the bell rang. The trio got up and started walking out of the large cafeteria for their next class.

**Kiba's POV**

We're on our way to science right now and I had thought of as many excuses as I could but in the end my friends settled on the fact that I was apparently in denial. ' Seriously, why do they hate those two so much?' I laughed aloud

'Maybe they're the ones in denial…' I laughed even more at the thought. 'Like hell that would ever happen! ' It was then that I noticed id stopped and both my friends were looking back at me. "I remembered something… really funny" I laughed again to make it more believable and started walking in between them again. Then someone came into the hall that made my friends frown and my smile grew.

Shikamaru had just come out of the council room with a smirk on his face… Something about him always made me feel like some fangirl with a backstage pass. It annoyed me a bit but I didn't care much since it was a pretty good feeling…

I noticed my friends looking at me again and I was confused until I saw that I had stopped walking again. 'Damn… I gotta stop doing that!' I looked at the older boy coming our way and smiled when he stopped in front of us. He was sporting a calm soft smile that made mine turn into a grin.

Naruto frowned and Gaara just scowled at the best friend of their enemies. Though his attention was focused on me as he said

"Good afternoon Kiba, its nice to see you again" My eyes got brighter and I was about to reply when I was suddenly pulled by my arms, away from that great smile. Naruto and Gaara pulled me in the direction of our next class and both replied not even sparing one glance back.

"Well see ya Naara" was said by an aggressive but cheerful voice

"Late for class" came out in an uncaring yet slightly angry tone

**Normal POV**

It was lunchtime and the president of the student council was excused from his next class to handle some work that needed to be done. He'd mentioned he needed help from two students and now they were on their way to the council room. Neji was leading, Sasuke and Shikamaru at his side.

Sasuke had been pissed as hell over what happened yesterday and judging by the frown on his face, he hadn't gotten over it. Neji looked beat from staying up all night writing down the many events that took place during the council meeting yesterday, for the principal. He sported a very similar frown to the raven-haired boy.

Shikamaru on the other hand was just plain tired. He hadn't heard the end of it when his friends found him laying under a tree at lunch time and he'd been forced to give up his afternoon of cloud gazing to listen to their very detailed complaints on the events he'd already seen.

The trio walked into the room and got comfortable. Then they started on the work that one person could have done alone, in about an hour. They'd finished less than 20 minutes later and sat down on the small couch at the side of the council room. The trio relaxed and Shikamaru got the time he needed to think of a good plan. He had to do something, not to hard, but not dimwitted. Something that, if he played his cards right, would get rid of the never-ending complaints for good.

He'd once been fine with helping his best friends with any and all problems they had. But then, for some reason, the rants and complaints started coming by the truckload. He toughed it out for a while, thinking it would stop soon enough. But he couldn't have been more wrong. They had gotten worse every day.

Shikamaru yawned; he was sure it would start again in a minute or two. His prediction was confirmed when Sasuke broke the peaceful silence of the room.

"Did you guys know I was forced to meet with the idiot again this morning?" The raven-haired boy snarled "Apparently he'd asked the teacher if he could have a talk with me about the team and when we met he'd just wanted to say congratulations on our winning the game…"

Neji raised an eyebrow at the odd statement and Shikamaru was just as surprised. "Isn't that a good thing?" Then the raven continued. "He said he was surprised and expected me to ruin the game or something" Sasuke scowled "And that stupid idiot said it all with that stupid smile of his damn it, sometimes I just want to beat that idiot senseless!"

Shikamaru realized that his friend was to far into his anger to think coherently.

This continued and in a while it had been Neji's turn. He'd been complaining about the redhead for a while.

"Damn that Gaara!" Neji said as he thought of the psycho's smirk as he caused yet another problem for the stressed president. 'To be honest his smirk looked really-' Neji cut off that dangerous thought before it went any further and looked to his bored friend again " Do you KNOW what the bastard did!"

Shikamaru realized that his friend had also gone to far into his anger to think coherently.

"… Yes, Neji… I was there…" The soccer player had been talking with the student council president for a bit longer before Neji realized something as well.

"Naruto and Gaara are best friends right? " Sasuke nodded and Neji continued

"Well I guess idiots and psychos can get along "

Sasuke nodded again and added "Honestly those three are just a bunch of punks with nothing better to do than bother everyone"

Shikamaru sighed 'I suppose they _have_ annoyed my friends quite a bit- wait, three?...'

His mind went back to the sweet boy he'd always see with the two and wanted to be sure. "Those three?" The boys looked at him and Neji answered

"That Kiba kid… I think that's his name. He's always with them so he has to be just as bad as they are!'" Shikamaru suddenly stood up a glare on his usually calm features

"Honestly, you two are just as annoying as them and you can't even see that they've been annoying you on purpose! If you'd just get off your freaking high horses you'd see you're acting just as immature by playing along! And you don't even know Kiba so how could you say he's that about someone you've barely ever talked to?"

The two boys were taken aback by their best friend's sudden outburst. Neji and Sasuke were both wide-eyed and speechless. Shikamaru saw this and realized all that he'd just said; he calmed himself down and cleared his throat. "Sorry... I just…I'm hungry… I get like that sometimes, that's all." He'd given a random answer and paid no attention to the looks of 'Since when?' that he received.

He sat down and looked away from his surprised friends as he thought about what to say to get the conversation to end how he wanted it to.

"…You two really are the most oblivious people in the world" This made both boys snap out of their frozen state and Neji replied " What nonsense are you spouting now?" Sasuke nodded and crossed his arms.

Shikamaru was gazing at nothing in particular as he continued. "Both your problems are easily solved you know…"

His statements made both boys let their guards down and look at him in curiosity.

Sasuke was tired of Shikamaru being so slow with explaining so he nudged him on "How so?" Shikamaru's gaze turned back to his friends as he fought back a smirk.

"How about… we make a bet?" The surprised boys would have interrupted but decided against it and signaled for him to go on.

"If you lose, you'll stop complaining to me about everything…for good" Neji raised an eyebrow "And if we win?" Shikamaru thought for a moment.

"Then Gaara and Naruto will be taken out of both the soccer team and the student council" Both his friends' eyes widened at this. "How?" That was all that came from their shocked forms. "I talked to Tsunade, she agreed to it once I told her all the details."

Excitement and determination danced in his best friends' expressions.

" What's the catch?"

Shikamaru looked at his raven-haired friend, he knew about their inclinations in relationships so that wouldn't be a problem. But he knew this was a long shot.

"If you can make your psycho…" his gaze shifted to Neji "or your idiot…" he looked at Sasuke " fall in love with you by the end of the year, you will win"

Both boys looked back at him, then at each other, and back at him with unsure expressions. Sasuke was the first to voice their question. "Uhh... Are we even sure they'd be... you know.. interested?" Neji nodded and looked expectantly at Shikamaru. Said brunette simply smirked and answered slowly. "Well I'm told their preferences are open to males, if that's what you mean. Now, whether or not they'd be interested in _you, _I suspect is far from in your favor." He chuckled a bit as his friends shared indignant expressions and answered in unison.

" It's a bet!"

Shikamaru smirked "Good, I'll be going now" He stood up and held his smirk as he exited the room. Then he saw the only person that could make his day ten times better.

The sweet boy was with the two others who he'd just been talking about. ' Man they're in for it now.' Sasuke and Neji could be very convincing when they wanted to be.

He walked to the younger boy who had stopped coming his way. Shikamaru smiled "Good afternoon Kiba, its nice to see you again." He noticed the brunette had grinned and was about to reply when Naruto and Gaara pulled him away.

' Yeah they hate me, likely because of my friends… ' Shikamaru sighed; he was frustrated that those two just wouldn't let him near the cute brunette.

" Man… I really hope this bet turns out like I think it will…"


	3. Unlikely Alliance

**Summary: Shikamaru was tired of his friends' complaining, so he thought of a simple way to solve the problem... Make a bet.**

**Warning: This will be a yaoi story! So if you don't like, turn back now. This is a NejixGaara, NarutoxSasuke and ShikamaruxKiba fic... other pairing might come out but that will be decided later.**

**Author's note: ...Please Review and tell me what you think. This is unbetaed so sorry for any spelling errors.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or its characters.**

**ENJOY**

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><p>A longhaired brunette boy was on his way to school. Anyone walking by could see the determination in the boy's eyes. The 12th grader held a knowing smirk on his face. He'd made a plan to get his psycho alone and he'd work on it from there.<p>

'I'll have to see what he likes… I wonder what would happen if I-' The courageous thought was cut off when he saw a shorter brunette that he'd only talked to a handful of times, walking just ahead of him. The boy was gazing to the clouds as he walked, this reminded Neji of Shikamaru.

The hyuga walked up to the boy who was currently deep in thought.

"You're Kiba right?" The brunette jumped slightly and blinked as he looked at the older boy. "Uh… yeah, Hyuga"

Neji smirked 'Bonus! Gaara's best friend! Yesss!' While Neji was celebrating in his head, the smirk grew on his face. This made the younger boy a bit uneasy, though he didn't show it. "What's up Hyuga"

Neji quickly looked towards the startled boy with a charming smile. "Why so formal Kiba… I personally think we should be friends-" He was cut off by a laugh

"You and me? That's hilarious! Why would I ever-" This time Kiba was cut off the one mid laugh. "You like Shikamaru don't you?..." Kiba's eyes widened and a blush instantly spread on his face. "H-how did you now?" Neji smirked again "Its incredibly obvious" Kiba's eyes widened again "Obvious? How I didn't even- wait…" He glared at the smirking boy "You were bluffing weren't you!"

The 12th grader simply nodded "I had a hunch, but now that I Know its true... would you like me to help you out with that?" Kiba blinked before his eyes were narrowed in suspicion. "What's the catch?"

Neji then leaned in to whisper the secret in the younger brunette's ear. " I help you with Shika and you help me with Gaara… Simple as that"

Kiba took a step back eyes widening for the third time in that morning "You're kidding, I had no idea you-" Their conversation was cut short when someone cleared their throat, so that the two would notice him.

Both boys looked to their side were an impossibly angry looking redhead was glaring daggers. "Hate to interrupt, but may I ask what's going on?" His voice was seething with sarcasm and anger. He really did look like he was about to explode any minute now. Gaara stood crossing his arms, with a glare that could scare away sharks.

Neji just straitened up and smiled and spoke in a charming tone "Good morning Gaara" The red head glared more than humanly possible "Shut it Hyuga and when did I say you could call me by my first name?" Kiba was currently standing awkwardly forgotten.

Neji smiled and tilted his head as if confused " hmm? I don't know… Its such a cute name I just cant stop saying it… Gaara. Gaara. Gaara." He said this happily, his voice holding a bit of sensual tone. Kiba looked at the impressively brave boy and preferred to keep his mouth shut.

The glaring redhead pouted for what seemed like a second before he forced it into a frown. He was very confused but Gaara hid it well. He decided to stop the odd conversation before it went any further. Suddenly, his angry green eyes looked at Kiba, which made the boy flinch and let out a nervous laugh.

Gaara just rolled his eyes and quickly pulled his friend away from the smirking Hyuga.

Neji looked at the retreating figures, his eyes focused on the angry redhead as he smiled. "This is going to be very fun… Stubborn psycho"

Then the 12th grader made his way to his first class.

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><p>Kiba was being pulled in a fast pace to the 11th grade homeroom. He let himself be dragged most of the way while thinking of what he should do. The brunette looked up at his friend's expression. Gaara eyes were glaring forward, though he held a pout that made Kiba release a small snicker. This stopped Gaara and made him turn to glare at the boy he'd forgotten he'd been dragging.<p>

"Gaara? What's going-" He was cut off by the redhead "Not much. Kiba… are you…" He trailed off and looked down, trying to figure out what to say. Kiba watched his friend glare to the floor with a frown and blinked at the question "am I what?"

Gaara looked at him "Kiba… Are you… dating Neji?" The brunette was shocked and it only took a second for his hands to raise in front of him in defense "No, No, No, No, No! Not at all! Like never EVER! I swear! In fact Neji likes-" He cut himself off and cleared his throat "Ummm… someone else…" He couldn't tell him, Neji would probably want to do it himself.

Gaara looked at him, a blank expression on his face. Then he turned "Whatever…"

The redhead shrugged and kept walking. Kiba sighed 'I guess Neji could use all the help he can get...'

He followed his friend and observed his angry expression 'And they call _me_ clueless'

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><p>The 12th grade math class had already started and Shikamaru was sitting in the back of the classroom, his face showing the usual bored expression while Kakashi talked. He'd seen Neji enter the room with a smirk clear on his face, followed by a calm Sasuke.<p>

Shikamaru looked out the window to the clouds and gazed at them for a while, when a tap on his shoulder snapped him out of his daze. He looked at Neji who handed him a small letter a small letter with a heart on it while pointing at the girl sitting in front of him. Shikamaru took the letter and looked at the girl sitting infront of his friend. She was looking away but the blush was noticeable on her face.

He opened her letter and read it

**To Shikamaru-kun**

**I've really liked you for a while and even though it's taken me some time to muster up the courage to confess, I couldn't do it face to face. So I wrote you this letter to express what I can't say. I would really like the chance to get to know you better, so, would you please go on a date with me?**

**-With love, Kattie**

Shikamaru folded the letter and put it in his pocket. His gaze again landed on the clouds and he rested his chin in the palm of his hand. The bored looking boy sighed 'Ill have to let her down easy, I guess.' His bored gaze then turned into a soft smile

'I wish Kiba would do something like this for me one day…'

Shikamaru looked at his friends and smirked. Neji had already told him what happened in the morning and he was glad Kiba was going to be helping him, though he wondered why the younger brunette would do that. But he didn't really care much for the reason, since that meant he'd get to see the cute 11th grader more often.

Sasuke had told him he was planning something for "his idiot", but he didn't specify much. 'I wonder what he's up to. Honestly, this is the most fun I've had in a while'

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><p>In the minutes before the 11th grade history class began, a cheerful blonde sat in the back of the classroom and watched his best friends walk in. He saw the angry looking read head walk in, his glare was directed at the ground. A slightly confused looking brunette, his gaze set on the other, followed Gaara. Naruto kept looking at them as they walked to their seats next to him. "Uh, what's up guys?"<p>

Kiba seemened to snap out of his focus and turned to the curious blonde, a huge grin on his face. "Oh nothing just Gaara being all jealous, it took a while but I'm glad he finally- OWW!"

He was cut short by a book that hit the back of his head. The redhead that sat behind him was glaring furiously at the pouting brunette. Naruto watched them and laughed. "Eh? Gaara, didn't know you had it in-Ahhh!" he ducked as the same book was thrown at his head. "Not true! It was just girly boy being weird…" Naruto looked disappointed.

"Ehh? That's it?! Jeez I almost died for that?" The blonde said this while turning his gaze to the book he now acknowledged as a weapon. Kiba snickered while still rubbing the back of his head 'Now who's in denial?' Though he didn't dare say that out loud. Gaara just turned in his seat and faced forward, arms crossed. "Whatever, doesn't matter anyways" Naruto and kiba both laughed. "Ok then, oh! Hey did you guys know they're serving ramen today at lunch?"

"Yeah I heard." Gaara looked at Naruto with a calm expression. Naruto grinned and leaned back on his chair "Cant wait!" Kiba smiled and looked away just as their teacher came in. He walked to the front of the class and started their lesson.

All the students paid attention to the lesson while Kiba was lost in thought. He looked at the redheaded boy sitting in front of him. ' So I'll be giving advice about Gaara to Neji…' Then his gaze turned to the grinning blonde beside him. 'And I'm already giving advice about Naruto to Sasuke. Hmm, he sure works fast. I wonder what he planned to do with what I told him' Kiba smiled 'This sure is the most fun I've had in a while. I just hope it turns out for the best, seeing as i can't even remember why this all started.'

The brunette thought more about the everlasting feud between them and the three twelfth graders, and couldn't come up with the reason for it. It had started so long ago, that probably none of them even remembered, and some didn't even care anymore. Like Kiba for example. He frowned at the memory of how much he'd despised Shikamaru and his friends, but now he was totally over whatever had happened. In fact, he knew most of them were, they were just accustomed to acting that way.

Kiba looked to the teacher for a moment, and shifted to take out his notebook. He'd been a bit on the fence about helping Sasuke and Neji win his friends over, but decided to help out in the end. He was no idiot, he wouldn't say or do anything that put his friends at risk, and he'd just give a few tidbits of info here and there.

Kiba smiled as he started writting down some things written on the board. ' Those two better mean well, or I'll tear them apart.' Never underestimate a member of Sannin High's wrestling team.


	4. The Stash

**Summary: Shikamaru was tired of his friends' complaining, so he thought of a simple way to solve the problem... Make a bet.**

**Warning: This will be a yaoi story! So if you don't like, turn back now. This is a NejixGaara, NarutoxSasuke and ShikamaruxKiba fic... other pairing might come out but that will be decided later.**

**Author's note: ...Please Review and tell me what you think. Dedicated to the awesome Thalia120! XD**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or its characters.**

**This is unbetaed so sorry for any spelling errors. **

**ENJOY**

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><p><em>'I'm already giving advice about Naruto to Sasuke. Hmm, he sure works fast. I wonder what he planned to do with what I told him' Kiba smiled ' This sure is the most fun I've had in a while'<em>

* * *

><p>The eleventh and tenth grade groups were brought together in the auditorium for a presentation. A local business had come to the school to inform the students about some unpaid internships that were available and the benefits of volunteering. Everyone was getting settled in their seats while the speakers got ready.<p>

Three tenth grade girls were chatting and laughing to themselves in the front row. The cheerful girls kept talking until the quietest of the three politely excused herself.

"I'll be right back" He lavender gaze was set on someone in the far back of the building. This didn't go unnoticed by her friends.

"Honestly Hinata, I have no idea what you see in that idiot." Her pink haired friend said this while shaking her head in disapproval. Then her blond friend stepped in.

" Yeah Hina! You should go for someone like Sasuke-kun"

The nice girl held a small frown while her friends swooned in their fantasies of the raven-haired boy. But she quickly smiled at the thought of what she was going to do.

"He's not an idiot and the fact that I'm a friend of his doesn't mean I have a crush on him" Hinata's smile was fond as she looked at her best friends.

The blond suddenly stood up with a smile. "Fine Hina. Just don't talk to the redhead. I heard he gets good grades by threatening to cut off the teachers legs while they sleep."

Hinata blinked at the comment. "Um, I doubt that… Were did you even hear that Ino?" Then the other girl decided to step in.

"We both heard that and it's not even the worst of the rumors."

Hinata shook her head. "Don't trust everything you hear, Saku"

She then turned around with a smile and made her way to the back of the building. The blonde she was looking for sat in between his friends. They seemed to be very happy in each other's companies; Even the redhead she'd heard so much about.

Hinata walked up to the blonde, this made his friends quiet down and look at the unusually bold girl. Kiba tapped the laughing blonde on the shoulder and Naruto's blue gaze landed on a lavender one.

"Naruto, Can we talk for a minute?" The two boys next to the blond looked slightly confused.

"Sure!" With that, they walked away from the others.

As the two walked, Hinata started the conversation "So Naruto, I was kinda wondering… Um, well I was in the library after school yesterday…"

The blonde straightened, his eyes widened and he looked at her. "Did you- "

She quickly cut off his question with another one "Are you and Sasuke dating?"

Naruto's eyes widened considerably as a light blush appeared on his face. "NO, no, Hell no!" The scream didn't seem to alter the calm girl's smile.

"Well I just thought that, since you two looked so close yesterday" Her smile never faded as Naruto sighed and looked away. "That was just duckass being stupid…"

Hinata chuckled a bit, taking note of the blush that only she had noticed. "Ok then Naruto, you can talk to me anytime about…" she cleared her throat "D-d-duckass, I'm sure I can help"

She then walked away with a small smile gracing her face.

Naruto nodded and made his way back to his friends.

When the blonde got back to his seat, the presentation began.

"Hello everyone, I'm Jaden and today well be talking about internships available in many businesses…" Gaara tuned the woman out and turned to face Naruto

"What was that about?" The blonde looked back at him and grinned "Nothing! We were just talking" Gaara raised an eyebrow and shook his head "… Whatever" The redhead shifted his gaze to pay attention to the presentation.

Naruto sighed and rested his shin on his palm. 'I didn't think anyone saw…'

**Flashback:**

_A grinning blonde ran to the library after school and slowed down when he got to the large doors. He opened them quietly and peeked inside to see if anyone was there. There were very few people inside. It was just the librarian sitting behind a large desk and two students sitting on a table working on a project. Naruto walked in and made his way to a corner of the library that barely anyone really knew about. _

_The books there were not the best and no one ever really read them except for the principal, which is pretty much why they weren't thrown away. The grinning boy walked up to a lower section of the books and pulled some out. When they came out, a medium sized box came into view._

_Naruto pulled it out, put the books back in their spots and placed the box on his lap. The black box was pretty big but just small enough to go unnoticed by the very few people that ever came to his secret corner. He unlatched it and inside was a paradise of all his favorite junk foods. Chips, candy, chocolate, you name it; it's in there. __The blonde took out a chocolate bar and started eating from his secret stash._

_ He had only told his two best friends about his little paradise corner and they promised not to eat from there. After all, they knew how his parents were. Just a few years ago they suddenly decided their family would get healthier and they banned all junk foods from the house. Poor Naruto was starved of his lifeline and he had to think of something, so the paradise corner was born._

_The blonde was so into his munching that he didn't notice a raven-haired boy walk into his corner. "Evening Naruto…" The boy in question just noticed he wasn't alone and turned his gaze to see a smirking Sasuke sitting down in front of him. He stayed quiet and just stared at the other as he tried to chew and swallow everything he had stuffed in his mouth. With a huge gulp, Naruto spoke. "What the hell are you doing here? And how'd you know I was here."_

_"I was walking by and saw you here…" Sasuke lied with his famous smirk dominating his features. The blonde raised an eyebrow. "Since when do you wanna see me?" The blonde pouted and continued " Or was it something about the team?"_

_Then Sasuke held a small smile and got a bit closer to the blonde. " Do I really need a reason to see you? You have something on your face…" The older boy leaned closer to the frozen blonde and used his thumb to wipe of some chocolate of the corner of Naruto's mouth. He then brought his hand to his own mouth, smirk still present, and licked it off._

_Sasuke took joy of the current blush on the still frozen boy's face and spoke. "Frankly I hate chocolate, but when it's off you… seems to taste much better."_

_This only made the other boy's blush deepen and he didn't seem to be able to find his voice. Sasuke brought his hand back to caress the Naruto's face. "I'll see you later…" With that the raven left, smirk and all, leaving the gaping blonde to stare in his direction._

_After a few minutes later, Naruto snapped out of his daze. "What the heck?!" He let out the scream and heard the librarian "Shush" him. He knew she was coming his was so he quickly closed the box and hid it. Then he discretely made his way out of there without running into her._

**End of Flashback**

"And I'm glad you all paid attention. I'm sure that all we discussed will be of great benefit to you in the future."

Jaden finished her presentation and everyone clapped, except for Naruto who was trying to comprehend how he'd missed the whole presentation. ' Damn! '

As the students walked out of the large building, lunchtime was already ending and Hinata made her way to the spot she'd promised to go to. When she got to a large tree on the school grounds, a boy walked up to her. She smiled at him and spoke first "Good afternoon Sasuke, I told him what you said"

Sasuke held a small smile for his best friend's cousin "Thanks Hinata. What did he do?" She then smiled triumphantly "Blushed big time, by the way, may I ask what exactly you did with him yesterday? He looked really flustered by it."

The raven just smirked and spoke. " I have class… Ask Neji, he knows" Then the two walked away from the meeting spot.

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><p>Sasuke was currently in history class, completely focused on the papers on his desk. The whole group was working on answering a bunch of questions the teacher had given them and they were all quiet and focused. Shikamaru had just finished so he stood up and handed the work to the teacher. She took them with a smile "Well Shikamaru, since you're finished, could you take these papers to kakashi?" She handed him a folder and looked back to her own work. The boy frowned and walked to the exit 'Note to self: Dont finish first'<p>

He made it to the science classroom and saw that the 11th graders were in the middle of a test. By the looks on their faces, he could tell it was hard. Shikamaru walked to the teacher and handed him the papers. "Miss Kurenai sent these." Kakashi nodded and took the papers while, unbeknown to them, a happy brunette smiled at the sight of the 12th grader.

Though he didn't allow himself much time for gazing as he looked back at the insanely hard test. Kiba was really frustrated now...

Kakashi read the papers, started signing them and signaled for Shikamaru to wait. The bored looking boy nodded and looked at the students taking their exams. The expressions they had were ranging from nervous to furious; and everything in between. Shikamaru's gaze was set on the class in general until he zoned in on one student. His face sported a small smile as he observed the pouting boy.

"Here... Did i interrupt your fantasies?" Kakashi whispered and handed the papers to the frowning boy. Shikamaru didn't bother to answer the smiling man so he just took the folder back and quickly walked out of the classroom.

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><p><strong>So there's the Fourth chapter of Win Them Over! Hope you liked it and please review XD<strong>


	5. Productive Frustration

**Summary: Shikamaru was tired of his friends' complaining, so he thought of a simple way to solve the problem... Make a bet.**

**Warning: This will be a yaoi story! So if you don't like, turn back now. This is a NejixGaara, NarutoxSasuke and ShikamaruxKiba fic... other pairing might come out but that will be decided later.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or its characters.**

**This is unbetaed so sorry for any spelling errors. **

**ENJOY**

* * *

><p>Neji hyuga had tried pretty hard and come up with many plans to get the redhead. But there was just something infuriating about his reactions. Apart from the few exceptions, Gaara reacted with frustration every time he did something close to affection. Honestly he had gotten tired if it, which was actually the reason he'd gotten closer to the redhead.<p>

As the twelfth grader walked to the second class of the day, he thought of the many excuses Gaara thought of, to be able to leave whenever he tried something now, and the times he'd been interrupted when he'd gotten close again. Kiba had told him some things that he knew helped a lot and others that he hadnt believed at first. Neji smiled 'I had no idea Gaara couldn't swim...' he released a chuckle ' looks like psycho isn't as tough as he looks'

"What are you so happy about" Neji was taken out of his thoughts by Sasuke who had just walked up to him.

"Not much... Hey Sasuke, when's your next game?" The raven-haired boy raised and eyebrow "This Friday. Why do you ask?" Neji just smirked at the question "Well, I will be going... Save me two seats ok?" with that, Neji walked away, leaving a confused Sasuke. '..._Two_ seats?'

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><p>Kiba sat down at his usual seat in the cafeteria while talking to Naruto and Gaara at lunchtime. The blond was a bit nervous as Kiba laughed at his confession.<p>

Naruto had finally decided to tell his friends about what had happened with Sasuke and as they started to eat, the blonde awaited their reactions. "I cant belive you didn't even move!" Kiba yelled as he laughed even more. Gaara furrowed his brows as he looked away from his friends. " Those two have been acting weird lately" His friends stop talking as they turned to look at Gaara. "What do you mean?" Kiba starts as Naruto finishes the thought. "Is Hyuga being odd or something?"

Gaara then realized he had said his thoughts out loud. His eyes widened a bit, as he looked back at his friends "No! Not at all, I was… just saying… you know… maybe" he said this as he looked away again. Naruto and Kiba raised their eyebrows "Ok, then…" they said in unison.

After they finished lunch, the trio started walking to their next class. Gaara sighed. "I have to go to a student council thing so ill see you both later."

When the redhead arrived at the meeting, all the other members were there. He'd purposely come late, though not for the reason he used to. As he sat down, Neji smiled and began.

"We are here to inform everyone that the students that write the sports section in the school paper are sick and the other members are busy with their own sections, so they have asked if two people from the student council could go and report on the next basketball game."

Gaara frowned as the secretary raised her hand. "So they asked for the president and vice-president to go, right." Everyone sighed and some brought their hands to their foreheads in irritation. Gaara's eyes widened and he crossed his arms.

"Why the hell do I have to go?" 'Again…' He was glaring now, as Neji smiled

"Isn't your friend, Naruto playing? You'd be going anyway right?" as Gaara glared even more, he released a low growl "...Fine" Neji smiled "Good… now that that's settled, lets get back to class."

Gaara is walking from the short meeting as he thought of the last time he and Neji were 'asked' to do something for the stupid newspaper alone.

**Flashback:**

_A very angry redhead followed the longhaired eleventh grader through the halls at lunchtime "I don't see why I have to help you" Neji smiled at the complaint " it's what they asked for." Gaara frowned as they walked into the student council room._

_"Shouldn't they be the ones doing this? Its their Job isn't it, so why do we have to do this?" It was clear by his tone that Gaara was mad. Though Neji didn't seem to care much as he secretly thanked his cousin for setting this up, since she was the head of the journalism club. Finally Neji chose to answer._

_"As you know, this is an extremely large school, Gaara. There simply aren't enough members in the journalism club and it's obvious they'd seek the help of the student council" The redhead just glared and crossed his arms as they sat down in the medium sized room._

_"Well, the date for the next newspaper to be released should be set before the upcoming basketball game so that it can be talked about in the next release." Neji began, but Gaara leaned back in his chair, arms still crossed as he countered. "It should be set after." Neji twitched at the usual difficulty Gaara brought to everything, but quickly calmed himself as he smiled. "Ok then… it'll be after"_

_The redhead blinked and glared "Don't you care about the game being in the school newspaper?"_

_Neji kept smiling " Don't you? " Gaara kept glaring "…Not at all"_

_"Then why should I care?"_

_"Because you're the president!" The redhead was getting frustrated now._

_"You are the vice-president."_

_" ... " Gaara couldn't seem to find a retort to the comment as he looked away from the still smiling Neji. "…Whatever… Just set the date before the game."_

_Neji nodded " Okay, Gaara. Whatever you'd like." It was the redhead's turn to twitch at the odd tone that Neji's voice had taken, but his gaze stayed away from the other._

_As Neji started filling in the paper, Gaara sighed. "Well you obviously don't need me for this so I'm free to go." As he stood up, Neji also got up and reached for his arm to stop him from leaving. Gaara looked at him in frustration "What? This'll only take a minute so I don't have to- ack!" The redhead gave a small yell in surprise as he was pulled onto one of the walls of the room._

_"You're right. Since we have the time, lets… do something else…" Neji had to act quickly since chances like this didn't come often, he smirked as he leaned and graced his lips over Gaara's. Said eleventh grader's mind was currently trying to figure out how the heck the situation had come to this. When his thoughts finally came back, he saw that Neji was still far to close for comfort and was waiting for his reaction. "G-get off Hyuga!" He was going to hit himself later for stuttering but it would have to wait. It was then that Gaara noticed that Neji had pinned both of his arms at his sides. "What the he-mph!"_

_The longhaired teen had gotten tired of waiting. This resulted in the rough kiss that Neji began as he pressed his lips against the shocked redhead's. The force of the kiss made the eleventh grader's back hit the wall, earning a slightly pained gasp. Neji took this chance to deepen the kiss leaving the other to try and regain his thoughts again._

_Gaara held back a moan as Neji sucked gently on his lower lip. The twelfth grader wasn't all that sane at the moment either; He knew he'd underestimated the redhead by a lot. All his senses were clouded by the tastes of the boy. Neji couldn't believe it as he tried to explore the responding mouth even more._

_"Nghh…" Gaara hadn't been able to hold back the loud moan and Neji smirked against the other's lips._

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

_Neji separated the heated kiss that left them both breathless as they heard the voice of the student secretary. "Hey, I'm here to get the paper for Hinata... Um… the door's locked. Can you open it? " Neji's eyes widened as he ran back to the table and quickly filled out the document, leaving the still breathless Gaara to sink against the wall._

_The longhaired twelfth grader opened the door a bit and held out the paper. "Here you go, Ino" He didn't give her enough time to say thanks as he slammed the door closed._

_Gaara looked up at Neji as he stood smiling next to the door. The brunette walked up to him and held out a hand to help Gaara up. Though the redhead just glared up at him. "I can get up on my own, Hyuga" The older teen smiled "I'd much rather you call me Neji" The redhead noticed the blush that was forming on his face, so he quickly got up and ran out the door._

**End of Flashback**

As the event came back to him, Gaara felt his face heating up and thanked his luck for being alone in the hall. He stopped, took a deep breath and brought his hands up to rub away the slight blush that had spread on his face.

When it was gone, he entered the classroom and sat down. As he did, Naruto passed him a note. When he read the scribbled question, it said "You're coming to the basketball game, right?" Gaara sighed and nodded at his friend. As he did, Naruto grinned and then turned his gaze to pay attention to the class.


	6. Presents, Dates and Basketball

**AN: This is a NejixGaara, NarutoxSasuke and ShikamaruxKiba fic... other pairing might come out but that will be decided later.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or its characters.**

**This is unbetaed so sorry for any spelling errors.**

**ENJOY**

* * *

><p>The week had finally come to its end. And Gaara had received the unpleasant surprise of having his hyperactive friends come to his house and wake him far to early for his liking. It was Friday, they hadn't had school, and both of them knew very well that he always used his first weekend day for sleeping. Since they hadn't had school today, he was going to sleep all day, like he usually did on Saturdays.<p>

Gaara grunted for the fifth time as he shifted in the passenger's seat in the car. Kiba huffed in annoyance and spared a glance at the redhead. "Oh stop whining, it's 8:00 am, it's not that early!" Gaara turned to glare at his friend. "Aren't you to young to drive anyways?"

Kiba scoffed "I have my learner's permit so it's fine." The redhead's glare intensified "That doesn't mean you can-" Their blonde friend leaned in between them from the back seat and cut Gaara off.

"Let's not look to much into it, okay? You shouldn't complain since we told you we'd be doing this before and you agreed.

Gaara grunted for the last time and tilted the seat back to get more comfortable. He was going to get as much time of sleep as he could.

**Flashback**

Gaara and Kiba were visiting Naruto's house after school, like they usually did. Though Naruto and Kiba had said they wanted to talk to Gaara so the three of them had hurried into the blonde's room for the important discussion Gaara'd been told they needed to have.

"Christmas shopping?" Gaara questioned as he looked at his friends. They both nodded as the blonde spoke first. "Yeah! I want to get something really good for my parents" Narruto always felt odd receiving many gifts since he was an only child, so he wanted to get his parents something special.

"I'm just gonna find some good presents and a new collar for Akamaru" Gaara could already tell that the brunette was going to try harder in looking for his dog's present than in finding some for others.

"I don't have anything to buy so why would I go?" Gaara tried to reason but his cheerful friends persisted.

"Oh come on! You have two siblings and a dad. So how is it you don't want to get anything for them?" Gaara faltered. He had never thought about that, since they'd never really asked for anything. Although they did get him things every Christmas so now that he thought about it, he should probably get them something. Kiba nodded at Naruto's statement as he settled on the bed.

"Yeah and after we go shopping during the day, we'll head to school for Naruto's basketball game at night" Gaara sighed in frustration. That game did not bring good memories, especially since he wouldn't be able to go with his friends. 'I can't believe I have to go there with that stupid Hyuga...' Gaara let out a barely audible growl at the thought and crossed his arms.

"Fine. I'll go with you guys on Friday but I can't go to the game with you… I have council thing" He explained before they could protest.

**End of flashback**

When the three of them got to the mall, they had planned to shop together. But kiba had mentioned that he knew a store that had something he thought Gaara's sister would like so the two of them had gone to that store, while Naruto went to a jewelry store where he'd ordered a necklace for his mom.

He'd been saving up for a while to get his parents great Christmas presents and he knew she would love the locket he'd picket out for her. He'd even had it engraved and they said it'd be ready today. Naruto grinned as he walked in to the jewelry store and a clerk quickly appeared at his side.

"Morning sir, what can I help you with?"

* * *

><p>Kiba walked into a store with Gaara following closely behind. The redhead had a tendency to get lost in huge malls since he wasn't ever big on going out or shopping, unlike Kiba, who never liked to stay in one place for to long.<p>

The brunette walked to where he'd seen the pair of boots he thought Temari might like as Gaara followed.

"Check it out! I think she'll like these" Kiba said as he gestured to a pair of jet black boots, on display at the front of the store. Gaara hummed and looked back at Kiba in suspicion. "Since when do you have any fashion sense?" Kiba scoffed at that "As if you'd know anything about that. Besides I'm sure she'll like these." Gaara raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.

"You barely ever talk to her. How do you know she'd want these?" Kiba looked back at him trying to figure out what to say, but soon he just grinned sheepishly and explained. "Well actually Temari overheard me and Naruto talking about the christmas shopping thing at school, so she just grabbed me and told me what she wanted... You know… to hint it to you"

Gaara smirked. "She's always been the aggressive type..." he trailed off as he went to ask for a pair in her size. 'So that's why she conveniently told me her size yesterday.' He remembered the odd conversation they'd had, that lead to her giving him her shoe size. 'She must really want these.'

* * *

><p>Naruto walked through the mall with a satisfied grin on his face. Everything had been handled fairly quickly at the store; Naruto smiled and tightened his hold on his shopping bag. 'All I have to do now is get it wrapped'<p>

He'd been heading to the booth he'd seen where they'd been wrapping presents but stopped and decided to go meet up with his friends and shop with them. Though as he was about to turn around he heard an irritably familiar voice "Good to see you again, Naruto." The blonde frowned and turned to see Sasuke walking to him with two large shopping bags in each hand.

"What are you doing here Uchiha?" Naruto asked, annoyance clear in his voice. Sasuke raised an eyebrow, the smirk still present on his face. "Isn't it obvious?" Naruto frowned, knowing he had asked a stupid question out of irritation.

'Of course everyone's shopping for Christmas! And the wrapped presents sticking out of his bags were pretty obvious… Ugh! Gaara's right, I need to start thinking more'

The blonde was more than irritated, his first day out of school for the weekend and the stuck-up duckass just had to ruin it. Sasuke smirked again seeing as many different expressions played on the- for once- quiet boy's face. 'No doubt, he's having a heck of an argument in there' though the raven sighed, knowing this wasn't getting him anywhere.

"Naruto, I've been shopping for a while, so I'm hungry… would you like to get something to eat?" The blonde snapped out of his thoughts and scoffed. "What makes you think I'd want to go anywhere with you?"

Sasuke didn't waver "Well I wanted to tell you something interesting I found out about the team we're playing against, today. But if you don't want to know then it's your loss-" Sasuke had started to leave when a hand on his arm stopped him. "Wait…" Naruto couldn't help the curiosity that came over him. He held an unsure pout as he glared slightly at the other.

"What did you find out…?" Sasuke smirked and answered with another question. "What would you like to eat?"

* * *

><p>Kiba and Gaara were walking through the mall, carrying the shopping bags with the presents they'd gotten. Everyone had been pretty easy to shop for, so they'd finished really early. Now the two of them were on their way to the pet store to get a new collar for Akamaru.<p>

"Where's Naruto? He said he'd catch up with us." Kiba asked as they walked into the store.

"I'm not sure... I guess he found something interesting." Gaara said with a shrug as Kiba began looking around the large pet shop.

After ordering their food, Naruto and Sasuke sat down in the blonde's favorite pizza place. Naruto lifted the slice and took one huge bite. Sasuke did the same, though he didn't pig out like a certain blonde had. Naruto gulped down the delicious mouthful and spoke.

"So what was it you wanted to tell me?" the blonde looked back at him with interest as Sasuke swallowed his own bite.

"Oh... Hmmm... I forgot." He hadn't really had anything to tell him but he wanted to spend time with Naruto so he'd just made something up. There was no way he'd lose this bet.

Naruto's expression held a mix of disappointment and anger as he yelled. "What? But you said it was something really interesting! How could you just forget?" He'd been pretty curious about it since the team they'd be playing against was one of the best.

"Well, maybe I'll remember later... You should probably stay with me while I remember it." Sasuke smirked as the blonde huffed and seemed to be indecisive about it.

Naruto figured that since they'd be going to the game anyways, why not go together? 'I guess I won't mess with him just for today. Since this game is pretty important'

After a while, Naruto sighed in defeat as he picked up his pizza. "Fine..." Sasuke enjoyed the victory as they continued their meal.

* * *

><p>Gaara and Kiba had just gotten to their meeting spot in front of a clothing store near the entrance of the mall, and decided to wait for Naruto to get there. Kiba sighed and decided to call their friend, but when he looked down he realized that he'd put his phone somewhere in one of the many bags he was carrying. So he looked at the redhead as they both sat down on a bench.<p>

"Gaara, call Naruto and tell him to come out so we can go." Kiba was a bit dissatisfied about not having been able to shop with the blonde. Seeing as the redhead wasn't really the easiest person to shop with.

Gaara took out his phone and dialed Naruto's number. He heard some rustling on the other end as Naruto answered.

"Shut up Sa-… Hey, Gaara!" Naruto laughed nervously as he saw the caller ID and swatted at Sasuke as they entered the movie that the raven had wanted to see. 'Who could that be?...'

"Hey Naruto… Are you with someone?" Gaara asked in curiosity. "No! I'm just walking around…alone… With no one." Naruto laughed nervously and ignored Sasuke who was shaking his head in disappointment. 'What a horrible liar…'

"I'm aware of what alone means, Naruto. And you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But we're leaving so come to the entrance of the mall so we can go." Naruto stayed quiet for a moment as he looked at Sasuke sitting next to him with a smirk clear on his face. The blonde covered the lower part of the phone so Gaara couldn't hear him, and whispered.

"Have you remembered that thing you wanted to tell me?" Sasuke's smirk seemed to grow as he answered. "Hmmm… No. Still can't recall it. But it was pretty important wasn't it. I'll have to remember as soon as possible wont I?" The blonde held a pout as he uncovered the phone and replied to his friend.

"I actually have a few more things to do so ill catch a ride home okay?" Gaara sighed and gestured for Kiba to follow him out of the building. "Okay, Naruto. I'll see you later then" With that Gaara hung up as Kiba walked up next to him.

"What's up with Naruto?" Gaara shrugged as they walked outside. "I'm not sure…He said he had a few more things to get so he'll be catching a ride with someone." Kiba looked at him with curiosity. "Huh? Who is it?"

"How should I know?" Kiba's expression changed to one of disbelief. "He didn't tell you?" Naruto had always been like an open book with them. Which is why he'd been such a terrible liar.

"Nope. Whatever, its his business. Drop me off at my house okay?" Kiba hummed as he nodded and soon he grinned back at Gaara.

"Hey! Maybe he's on a date." Gaara chuckled as they put the bags in the trunk and entered the car. "Yeah, sure. Maybe it's a date." He humored his friend as they drove to Gaara's house.

When they got there, Gaara got out of the car and opened the trunk to get the things he'd bought. Kiba grinned and waved at him. "Seeya later Gaara" He drove off to the game, after Gaara had raised a hand in a sort of wave back. Gaara walked inside his home and placed the bags in his room with a huff. He quickly walked to the kitchen to get himself something to eat, but as he got there, he heard sounds coming from outside.

He looked through the window in the living room and saw Neji leaning against his car with his arms crossed. Neji saw him and gestured for him to come out.

Gaara closed the curtains with a sigh. 'Today just isn't my day.' He walked out of the house and when he got closer he saw that Shikamaru was in the car too.

'Well at least I won't be alone with the him' he got in the back seat successfully ignoring the "Evening, Gaara" he'd gotten from Neji as he passed him.

Naruto and Sasuke's day at the mall had been more pleasant than the blonde had expected. As they walked out of the movie, Naruto followed the older male outside.

"We should hurry up and get to the school. The game is starting soon."

Sasuke walked pretty fast and as Naruto followed him he noticed that they weren't heading to the parking lot. "Uh… Where are we going?" They turn a corner and Naruto sees a small parking lot with a few cars in it. All of them seemed incredibly expensive. As they walked up to a guard, Sasuke showed a card to him and he quickly stood aside to let them pass.

As they got to the car, Sasuke chose to answer. "Private parking" Naruto stared at him blankly and replied. "I figured, thanks" He looked back at the amazing car the twelfth grader owned. "Why can you park here?" Sasuke spared only a moment to give a casual answer.

"I own this mall…" He opened the car door and entered the car while Naruto stood frozen outside. Sasuke started the car as Naruto opened the door and shot inside. "You what! How?" Sasuke sighed as they pulled out of the parking.

"Well, My father owns many different shopping centers… This is just one of them." Naruto's eyes still showed some surprise as he hummed and looked out the window. "I had no idea." Sasuke frowned and spared a short glance at Naruto. "Its no big deal, really..,"

They got to the school and went to the locker room where they kept some spare uniforms. Soon they were ready to go as they walked out, they saw that the gym was already filled with people waiting for the game to start. Sasuke and Naruto talked to the team members and they got into their positions.

Sasuke stood in the middle of the court as the referee threw the ball up and the game started in their favor when the raven hit the ball to their side.

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><p>Neji parked outside the school and the three of them got out of the car. The ride there had been a very quiet one, and Gaara was glad for that. Neji let Shikamaru walk in front of them as he waited for the redhead to get out of the car. Gaara sighed and walked up to Neji. He'd been hoping for the older boy to walk off with Nara, but that hadn't worked out.<p>

Gaara chuckled a bit. It seemed like he'd developed a phobia of being alone with the twelfth grader after the whole kissing incident. Gaara's eyes narrowed a bit as the thought brought a light color to his cheeks.

"Something wrong Gaara?" Neji had been observing him all this time and had been quite interested at what could make the redhead blush like that.

Gaara glared at him, blush still in place, as he gave a short answer. "I'm cold" He crossed his arms as he looked forwards again and had begun to walk to where Shikamaru was, just a bit ahead of them, when he felt something on his shoulders. When Gaara looked back, he saw that Neji had taken off his jacket and put it on him.

Gaara held a pout for less than a second before he forced it into a scowl as he took the jacket off of himself and handed it back to Neji in one swift motion. "I'm fine…"

"Thought you said you were cold?" Neji and Gaara stopped walking as the redhead crossed his arms.

"Well now I'm saying I'm fine."

"But you're still red." Neji said as he reached forwards to touch Gaara's face. Though the redhead swatted the hand away and persisted. "I said I'm fine-" Their argument was cut off by a third voice.

"Gaara, a jacket can't kill you. The game already started and I'd like to get there before it ends." Both of them froze, as they looked at Shikamaru who had turned around and spoken in a bored tone. As he said that, he turned back to keep walking to the gym. Neji followed with a triumphant smirk, belatedly realizing he'd caused the redhead to blush. Though he felt kind of stupid for not having noticed until he'd touched the redhead's cheek.

Gaara followed too, though he held a glare that could make hell freeze over. It was firmly directed at Shikamaru's back as he spoke. "It's not your business, Nara" It seemed like there was venom dripping off of every word. But Shikamaru kept going, completely unaffected, as he chose to ignore the statement.

They entered the gym to hear nothing but screams of excitement as the crowd roared for their favored teams. Shikamaru's bored expression shifted to one of interest as he looked around for a certain brunette he'd been expecting to see here. Though it shifted to a frown when he couldn't find him. Shikamaru sighed and turned around to look at Gaara and Neji who'd just sat down.

"Ill be going then" The redhead had been disappointed to be left alone with Neji, but he was still extremely angry at Nara so it would have been a bad either way. 'Besides, he won't try anything if we're in this crowd'

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><p>"The match had continued with both teams shifting in leads many times, but in the few remaining seconds, Naruto Uzumaki, one of our star players, made a final shot that lead our school to victory." Gaara said as he and Neji brainstormed on what to write for their school newspaper about the game.<p>

"Hmm… Well that sounds good and we got some pretty good pictures too." They continued discussing as they exited the gym with a large crowd of people.

"Woo!" "Yeah!" "Congratulations!" All the team members were celebrating their victory. Naruto grinned as he held the basketball in front of him and many others crowded around him so Hinata could take a picture. Her two best friends had dragged her here and she was going to at least take advantage of it and take a few good pictures for the yearbook. She loved to join as many clubs that involved anything from journalism to just recording memories like these. Hinata smiled as she looked at the photo she'd taken and the people in it, crowded around her to see it.

Sasuke and many other team members toasted on their victory as they drank the soda that a team member had brought. He finished his drink and two girls came to his side.

"Congratulations Sasuke!" The blonde said, "We knew you could do it!" a pink haired girl continued. Sasuke turned to them as he picked up two more cups and handed them to Sakura and Ino. "Thank you. I'm glad you both enjoyed the game." Sasuke played the role of 'the charming team captain' perfectly as he picked up another cup. Sakura smiled sweetly as she took a sip of her drink and spoke "Sasuke, the two of us were going to the movies in a bit. Would you like to come?" Sasuke hummed in thought but there was in fact another movie he'd wanted to see. 'So if I play my cards right…'

"That depends… what movie?" The blonde quickly joined in with a smile of her own. "Ah, how about you chose!" Sasuke smirked as he mentally celebrated yet another victory.

"Then I'd love to-Ack!" Sasuke yelled as a ball hit his back hard enough to make him stumble and drop his cup, spilling his drink. He looked back to see Naruto grinning sheepishly at him, though only Sasuke spotted the mischievousness in his eyes. "Oh, sorry about that. Hahaha I fell" the others around him laughed with the blonde, commented on his clumsiness and moved on. Although the two girls seemed to have been a little turned of by Sasuke spilling his drink all over their shoes because the left pretty quickly after that.

He ran a hand over his black hair as he sighed, directing a glare at the grinning blonde who was busy chatting with others as if nothing had happened.

'I'm going to get him for this…'

Kiba was one of the last people to come out of the large gym.

He looked around at the many people driving away, and sighed. "I guess I'll be leaving alone then." he'd been hoping to be able to go watch a movie with his friends as soon as the game ended. He pouted in frustration and began walking to his car. But as soon as he took out his keys, he heard a voice come from behind him.

"Finally found you, Kiba"

He turned around quickly; ready to tell whomever it was to leave. His rare bad moods were something he didn't like to show at all. Though his eyes widened a bit as he recognized whom the voice belonged to.

"Oh... Hey, Nara..." His frown changed completely as he smiled at the older male. Shikamaru had to hold down a chuckle at Kiba's sudden change of emotions. They both stood silent for a few seconds, until Shikamaru held a small smile and stepped forwards.

"You can call me Shikamaru. Or just Shika if you'd like, my friends call me that. But, Kiba... I have something to ask you..."

Gaara walked to the twelfth grader's car and got in the passenger's seat. Neji got into the drivers seat and smiled as he heard the seatbelt clicking beside him. "I had fun with you, Gaara" The redhead refused to look at him as he replied. "Drive me home already, Hyuga."

Neji smiled "I have half a mind to leave you here… You could ask nicely" This time, Neji was met with defiant green eyes. "Like hell I would!" Neji chuckled even with the redhead screaming at him to stop laughing. Though Gaara stopped talking as a thought came to him.

Neji noticed the silence and looked at the redhead who leaned into the seat and crossed his arms. "Hey, Hyuga, where's Nara? Weren't you his ride back?"

Neji started the car as he replied. "No, he said he'd catch a ride with someone." Gaara hummed at the answer as the car drove off. 'Nara ditched us and seemed to be distracted… Just like… Naruto'

Kiba pouted and looked away "Well…I do like you... But, my friends would be pissed…" Shikamaru smiled "Mine too…" He brought a hand up to make Kiba look at him "But isn't that half the fun?" Kiba couldn't help the blush that spread on his face as he considered it. Shikamaru saw this and decided to ask again.

"So?... Will you go out with me?"

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><p><strong>So there you have it! The 6th Chapter of Win them Over. :) Feel free to tell me what you think!<strong>


	7. New Beginning

**AN: This is a NejixGaara, SasukexNaruto and ShikamaruxKiba fic. Yaoi. I'm going to make a few tiny changes to the story overall. You'll probably notice some here. This is just a small piece to get people warmed up to the story again. It's all lovey-doveyness. But sadly this couple won't stay happy for too long... That's not my style xD**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or its characters.**

**This is unbetaed so sorry for any spelling errors.**

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><p>Kiba Inuzuka remained eerily still as he lay covered with countless sheets, each one a bit thicker than the last. He heard many yells for his name, several footsteps, clatter, and calls for breakfast time. All these sounds were a daily routine and usually he would be taking part in them: showering, getting ready, running to eat and so on. But today… Oh today. Kiba could easily tell as he stifled a yawn and moved for the first time to stretch in his bed, that this was just one of those days… His car, which he was too young to drive alone anyways (even with a learner's permit), was just taken by his uncle. The man had needed a car for work purposes since he'd just arrived from abroad and would be staying for a while. So basically, he had to walk to school.<p>

"Some more exercise will do you good! Besides, your school isn't that far." Kiba let a lazy frown adorn his face as his mother's words replayed in his head. He knew very well that he was capable of walking to school but his energy levels were very depleted in the beginning of the day, for as cheerful and healthy as the boy was, Kiba Inuzuka was NOT a morning person... Or to put it correctly: Kiba Inuzuka was NOT a _school_ morning person! And that was final.

'Though I still have to get up' Kiba thought as he sat up slowly and began his zombie-like walk to the bathroom down the hall, not even registering the many "what?! You're not ready yet?!" , "you're gonna be late" And "Hurry up!"s he received along the way.

'A cold shower should wake me up a bit…' He thought as he dragged his feet across carpeted floors and closed the door, removing his disheveled clothes and getting into the tub.

It had only taken a few minutes for him to be completely ready and stuffing his face with delicious breakfast when his mother glanced out the window and commented "Oh so you set something up after all? You better hurry up then and not make your ride wait too long." She looked at her son who glanced back in confusion. "What're you talking about?" She raised an eyebrow and pointed outside. "Didn't you ask Shikamaru for a ride to school? He's waiting outside."

Kiba tried to cough out the bread that had gotten stuck in his throat at that. He then gulped down the last of his orange juice and ran outside muttering a "That's right, thanks! See ya mom." as he went.

It would be an extreme understatement to say that Kiba was surprised. Christmas vacation had long since passed, and today was the Monday of their second week back in school. So it had been a while since the twelfth grader had asked him out, to which he'd replied a weird mix of "hell yes!" And "No way!"… It was odd even to him. Kiba knew he had a huge crush on the other, but somehow he'd managed to mess it up at the time when it counted most. But the older boy never gave up, he was smart enough to notice when he was wanted and kept in touch all though Christmas vacation. The twelfth grader's family had gone to stay with his grandparents for the holidays but they'd been talking on the phone all the time and Kiba had grown accustomed to those long calls, his heart bracing with anticipation and delight each time a certain ringtone played and that one familiar name popped up on his phone's screen. So here Shikamaru was, a hard worker only for Kiba, ready to pick him up for school, as the younger boy had mentioned the loss of his car over the phone during the weekend.

Kiba smiled brightly as Shikamaru did the same, both reveling in the moment as the younger got closer. A warm hand was extended to caress Kiba's cold cheek and his smile softened just a bit. Those few seconds had felt like an hour for the both of them, but soon enough, Kiba shifted and walked around that car to get into the passenger's seat. "Um... thank you for being here."

Shikamaru smirked and entered the car as well "No problem, it's for you after all." Kiba looked out the window as he slid his seatbelt on, and brought his arms up to rub himself in an attempt to get warmer. The other boy looked out ahead as the car drove off, he then reached an arm to turn a knob that caused warm air to spread inside the car. Kiba was silently grateful for his attentiveness, but he had to wonder why he was so quiet every time he was around Shikamaru. When they talked on the phone it was like they were closer than ever, but when they saw each other after the break, something had changed.

Shikamaru looked ahead and wondered only for a moment, the meaning of all this silence on Kiba's part, but he came to the same conclusion as always. They had both liked each other and been themselves, but when Shikamaru actually made it known to Kiba that he was in fact interested, that made the boy much more aware of everything and self-conscious, which in turn had the same effect on him. So now, here they were, in a silent car ride when usually it would be filled with meaningless chatter and lovable rants. Shikamaru frowned a bit, and spoke

"So Gaara is arriving today, huh?" A much needed attempt at conversation. Kiba perked up, and replied. "Oh, yeah! The bastard got a whole extra week of vacation! And in Hawaii no less! You even traveled too! All I did was stay home and stare at the ceiling all vacation long…" Shikamaru smiled at the fact that other boy was back to being himself just a bit and continued.

"I wouldn't call staying at my grandparent's house travelling. All I did was stare at the ceiling in a different color. Anyways, I don't get the meaning of travelling for Christmas, isn't the point of it to spend time in your home with loving family and all that?" Kiba grinned "Isn't that sweet? I'm sure it'd be great to spend the holidays with you!"

At that, the older boy laughed and replied, "Well maybe I should invite you next time? That'd be fun." Kiba laughed and gave an instant "sure!" Though his laughter died down a bit at what they had just done. Inviting each other for the holidays was pretty big in his mind and it reminded him how much he really did like Shikamaru, the thought that he could mess it all up always scared him. Silence occurred in the car again as they arrived in school, and Shikamaru parked the car with a sigh. Kiba quickly reached for his seatbelt, intending to dash off to class, but a hand on both of his stopped his movements.

He looked up to see a stern but soft expression playing on Shikamaru's face, "W-what is i-" "You know I love you, right? I'm not sure I ever said it properly, but it's true. I love to see you smiling every day and enjoy all the little things you do. You could never ruin anything in my eyes. And you don't really have to reply to me, but don't ever stop being yourself around me, okay?..." There was more silence for a second, as Kiba replayed all those perfect words in his mind, and stared widely into the twelfth grader's eyes as if trying to take a snapshot of this moment, to keep in mind forever. Soon he decided it was best to speak, but no words came to mind, it was like all the good ones had been said already by the other so all he could do was sit there and stare. He began to panic when he felt Shikamaru start to move his hand away, so he did the first thing that crossed his mind at that moment.

If he didn't want the other to go, instinct told him to lean in closer, not taking into account how close the other was already. His eyes shut instinctively once again letting his senses guide him as he felt the warmth of Shikamaru's lips on his own, bringing a hand up to tangle in the other's hair, all that crossed his mind was how right it all felt.

There was a loud, high-pitched ring that made both inhabitants of the car jump of surprise. "That's the bell... We should get to class. I'll see you later Shika!"

It was obvious that Kiba had regained his voice, and wouldn't be losing it again. He grinned as he finally undid his seatbelt and opened the door, looking back at the dumbfounded expression on Shikamaru's face and grinning even more. Though the older boy seemed to snap out of it and decided to take the chance.

"Oh.. Well actually I was wondering if this Saturday you wanted to…" Shikamaru belatedly realized he hadn't expected Kiba to snap out of it so soon and found himself lost as to what to do know. Kiba's expression softened for a moment before he replied, "Sure! After all, I love you too." He said with certainty as he closed the door and walked off to his first class. It seemed like Shikamaru had said all the right words to him, because he felt and acted just like he had before the other had confessed, and that's just how it should be.

Shikamaru remained frozen for a few seconds before his brilliant mind caught up with him 'He just kissed you!' It repeated, as if trying to inform him of something he'd missed. He sighed and closed his eyes as he turned off his car and leaned back in his seat with the door open. He felt amazing; there was no other word for it. And he had to resist the urge to run out of his car and find Kiba again just to spend more time in his presence. He sighed once again, in complete contentment and as he stepped out of the car and closed the door behind him, he felt like he was stepping out of heaven.

They both walked into their respective classrooms in the best of moods. Knowing the very first call they'd both be making as soon as they got out of school.

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><p><strong>Small Previews of the following chapters:<strong>

He rested his elbows on his knees and bowed his head so kakashi couldn't see his face. But he knew very well who that was. He would recognize that hair anywhere, it was that Gaara kid who glared at him, as if wishing a bus would fall on him, everytime he called him to give an answer in class.

"And he always has that stupid smile on his face. As if we weren't complete rivals so little time ago-" Kakashi cut into the rant.

"Things change-"

"No they don't." Gaara said flatly.

He sighed and sat down next to the redhead. "Well then, why don't you tell me what you would like him to do." Kakashi tried to reason, emphasizing his words carefully. Gaara frowned "What i'd like him to do is shut up." Kakashi held back an impatient sigh "What else?"

"...'What else..?" Gaara repeated.

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><p><strong>MY STORY LIVES! It feels SO good to finally update it even if it's short. I know it probably lost a lot of readers and won't get many reviews, but i'm really glad to have gotten the notification of a review by a guest from here that reminded me how much I love these couples and what I really wanted to do with this story. So in an effort to continue it, I will try post chapters that are a bit short, but more frequent! Because I don't want to stop again!<strong>

**Thank you so much to everyone who's read this story so far! :D Everything in the story will unfold and be explained in time. xD Expect more humor, more trolling, more fluffynes, and lots of drama from an unexpected source!**


	8. Flowers, Partners, Secrets?

**This is a continuation of the day in the last chapter. So that one and this one make a full school day. :) This day follows Naruto, Gaara, and Kiba. Then switches back to the morning to show a bit of Sasuke's POV in their first class of the day. And then goes back to lunch time and so on for Naruto and his friends. So it's basically centered around them. **

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><p>' This place is annoying!' The eleventh grader thought with a deep frown as he ran through the empty halls of Sannin High school. Class had just begun and he'd had a bit of a slow start this morning but after such a long vacation, who could blame him? It was the Monday of their second week back to school after Christmas vacation and Gaara was in no hurry to return to classes and teachers and schoolwork and homework and- He cut of that train of thought as it just worsened his already ragged mood. He heard a faint rustle coming from his backpack as the newest things he'd shoved in there settled. Gaara glared in embarrassment though it was overshadowed by his annoyance.<p>

"damn him" Gaara muttered to himself as he made a final turn in the halls to spot the door of his first class.

Many students jumped in surprise at the loud slam of the opened door against the classroom wall. The redhead walked inside, frown still in place. His horrible mood was easily noticeable, though the feeling he gave off had lightened up much more thanks to his new appearance. He walked to the teacher, giving him a paper excusing his tardiness as Iruka cleared his throat to get the attention of the students again. "Nice to have you back. Take a seat then."

Gaara didn't say anything; he simply walked to his desk with a sulk that wouldn't be going away any time soon. The redhead sat in the desk in front of his blond-haired friend, faintly registering the loud rustle he heard as all the students settled down. Gaara leaned to the backpack he'd dumped on the floor next to him, and unzipped it to take out a notebook. At the movement, Naruto's eyes shifted down to his friend and the backpack for only split second, he blinked when a colorful sight greeted him.

"Are those flowers?" He whispered, intent on only being heard by the redhead in front of him. Gaara noticeably flinched for a moment as his hand reacted quickly, closing the bag. "No!...Imean.." He spoke in a quieter tone when the teacher gave him a pointed look. "It's nothing" Naruto grinned, "Who's it for?" Naruto asked "You know you shouldn't keep them in there like that…" He added as the thought came to mind, then his eyes widened a bit in realization "Or are they from someone?" Naruto smirked at the affronted, clearly embarrassed; angry look on he was met with. "Oh cool! Girl or boy?" The blonde winked, as he whispered slightly louder than before, but not loud enough for anyone else to really hear or pay attention to what he said.

He'd always been aware of the fact that his friend was bisexual, so the question wasn't entirely unnecessary, as they'd known each other since childhood. He himself hadn't ever really thought about that type of thing, but suspected he was gay, he'd never really said anything about it though. Unlike Gaara, who never had any qualms with hiding relationships, especially since his tastes tended to linger to older crowds, usually one to four years older actually- Naruto remembered a particularly attractive and experienced girl the redhead had gone out with once… The blonde chuckled to himself at the memories his completely derailed train of thoughts had brought up, making a confused and suspicious look cross his friend's face.

'ohoho she was-wait! What am I doing?!' Naruto, suddenly out of his stupor, almost yelled out "You can't distract me!" Gaara raised an eyebrow "When did I-" "Don't even try it-Who're they from?" Naruto said somewhat smugly, but well intentioned. The redhead was slightly frustrated and considered arguing more but thought better of it with a sigh "A welcome back present…" His voice was sure as if he wasn't telling his best friend such a blatant lie. Naruto sent him an are-you-kidding-me look, and he straightened, paraphrasing and swinging together random words his mind provided and hoping they made sense when spoken.

"My sister thought it would be nice to give me them this morning, I stuffed them in my backpack because I was in a hurry. That's it. Nothing else." There was a moment of pregnant silence between the two of them. The sound of pencils scratching away on notebooks and pages being turned, was all that could be heard. Gaara barely kept up his composed expression when Naruto suddenly grinned.

"That was oddly cheesy of her." Gaara held back a relieved sigh and said, "Yeah, well… we should pay attention"

The eleventh grade science class continued in silence as they turned away from each other and focused on the work. Naruto frowned, while chancing a glance at his best friend's back. 'Does he think I'm an idiot? Really…' He forced his mind away from that and tried to focus on the board at the front of class. What Naruto couldn't see was Gaara deep frown, green eyes narrowed. 'Why did I just stuff them in there!? Tch, the bastard caught me by surprise' His thoughts drifted to the morning, when he'd first arrived at the school, barely on time. When he'd been pulled into a tight embrace…

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><p>The classes seemed to pass by in a flash for Kiba. He'd heard his friends mumbling to each other a bit, but considering he wasn't the best at Iruka's class especially, he'd chosen not to join them; they'd fill him in later. The Inuzuka boy was still pretty giddy over the wonderful morning he'd had, and he was already having a hard time focusing as his mind wandered over to a certain twelfth grader rather effortlessly.<p>

They were already in their third class of the day and the teacher seemed to be having a hard time getting control of the class, if the loud mixture of voices and laughter he heard behind him was anything to go by. The petit woman yelled at the top of her lungs, promising detentions and suspensions to the crowd of students behind him. Kiba smiled, blissfully unaware of his surroundings. She wasn't teaching right now so he freely let his mind wander.

'What could we do next weekend? I accepted but he didn't really say.' Kiba grinned, but quickly toned it down, deep in thought. 'We could go rock climbing, or swimming, or go dancing! I know some great places for tha- wait, Shika's not exactly the most active person ever is he?... Watch a movie? I could go to his house-or uhm…' Kiba was at a loss. 'Ugh! Why is it so hard to choose?!'

His mind was throwing a thousand and one possibilities at him and he excitedly considered them all. He knew Shikamaru hadn't decided anything yet, and no doubt was also brainstorming right now, but he really wanted it to go well. He smiled in anticipation, his mind going at lightning speed, when suddenly the teacher spoke.

"Now that that's settled, let's move along"

The brunette blinked for a moment, wondering where all the ruckus had gone. He looked back subtly and noticed the group that had been in the middle of the commotion was gone, most likely sent to detention, and the whole class had quieted down.

The teacher continued, making an announcement that had the whole class groaning in discontent. Yet another project, this time in pairs.

"You'll be assigned your partners by me" More groaning and whining "Settle down now. I will assign three chapters to each of you and give you two weeks to complete the assignment. Have it on my desk, Monday." She proceeded to call the names of each student, they'd walk to her and she'd hand them a paper with all the requirements she wanted and they're partners name. It was obvious she'd tasked herself with giving them partners they barely talked to normally.

Kiba stood when he heard his name, and walked to her. She smiled at him and he took the paper, not bothering to look at it until he sat down with a huff. His eyes went straight to the bottom of the paper, to find out whom he'd be spending most of his time with for the next two weeks. His eyes widened and he grinned as he read Gaara Sabaku on the sheet. He wondered for only a moment why she'd pair them together but with a look around the room, soon realized the best-and-worst pattern in the partnerships. He pouted for a moment, slightly insulted, as he wasn't really that bad in this class, he was average at worst.

Gaara tapped on his shoulder after moving his desk closer to the brunette. "We should get started" Kiba nodded and glanced at his frowning blonde friend who walked to them with a huff. "This is so unfair!" he said. Kiba grinned, "To bad Naru, who're you paired with?"

The blonde looked down to his paper but didn't get to say it as someone joined them "That'd be me. Hello captain." Gaara and Kiba looked up to see a guy they only vaguely recognized was from Naruto's basketball team. He was tall, with broad shoulders and light skin; short, messy pitch black hair perfectly framed his face and bright blue eyes stared them down "Oh! Byers." Naruto grinned, "Well I guess it could've been worse." The other smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Good to know."

"Who're you?" Gaara said, not intending the harsh tone that came out. The other male slightly straightened but turned to them nonetheless "I'm Alexander Byers, it's a pleasure to meet you both." He said politely.

Kiba laughed at nothing in particular "Nice to meet you too Al, my name is Kiba and this is Gaara" He gestured to the redhead who simply nodded. The brunette's actions making it clear how expertly and automatic he'd come to be at breaking the immensely thick figurative ice, after being friends with Gaara for so long. Alexander raised an eyebrow at the new nickname, but soon smiled, hearing Naruto's laugh.

"Al, huh? I like it. It's easier." The blonde chuckled "That's your new name then" He declared. For only a moment, Alexander held a soft expression Naruto couldn't decipher. "We should get to work then." With agreeing nods, the two infront of them turned to their work and Naruto guided him to some empty desks. They pushed them together, sat down, and got to work.

Soon enough, it was lunchtime, and a group of friends pulled Alexander away, though he promised to talk to Naruto later on.

* * *

><p>Break time had come much too slowly for Gaara as he grudgingly got used to all the schoolwork again. It turns out he'd missed a lot of homework, though gladly he'd done two projects ahead of time so that he wouldn't have to worry about them on his weeks' vacation. He sat down at their usual lunch table with a huff and fixed his gaze on the blonde sitting across from him. "Was school always this hard?" Naruto laughed as he opened a pack of Doritos and started munching on them.<p>

"Pretty much. Oh yeah, I haven't told you yet! Last week, I'm pretty sure I got a lot ahead with our bet." Naruto snickered. "You should've seen Sasuke's face!" Gaara raised an eyebrow and smirked, "What did you do?"

The blonde finished gulping down his soda and filled him in, "It's been a while since I actually stooped to pranks but it was way to much fun. They were just the classics. I had no idea how much effect they'd have on him!" Naruto laughed, explaining further. "Cracked rotten eggs in his backpack, itching powder in his uniform, messing with him in our first team meeting, of course that last one was only for a bit considering I actually wanted to focus on the team." Naruto continued laughing and his friends joined in. After they talked more about the blonde's success, through bounds of laughter, things calmed down just a bit.

"I'm glad to be back then, maybe I'll try a few classics on Hyuga" Gaara said before taking a bite of his burrito. "I should start planning then" He added as Naruto cut in "You still think you have a chance?" He said good-naturedly. Gaara's eyes were defiant; he smirked. "Yes, actually I do."

The conversation continued on, topics changing often as they walked out of the lunchroom and strolled the halls. Soon enough, though, Alexander walked up to join them. Naruto decided to join him and walk to the library, leaving his two friends to continue a rather loud discussion about who would win in a challenge or something. But that's all Alexander could make out from the random outbursts.

"Your friends are quite lively aren't they, captain?" Naruto chuckled "Yeah, and call me Naruto." The other simply nodded, holding a rather attractive smile, Naruto noticed. Though he recovered quickly and grinned "But not in games and practices! I still expect a "yes, captain" from you at those!" they laughed at the blonde's lighthearted jab and Alexander answered, a slight deepening in his voice.

"Yes, Captain…" They smiled at each other, and as their walk continued, Alexander added, "Anyways, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind my sharing some ideas for our next gave with you." He received a quick answer.

"Course not, go ahead."

* * *

><p>Sasuke's POV<p>

I noticed Neji walk into our first class looking like he owned the place, totally ignoring the fact that he was pretty late. It's obvious that nothing in the world would be able to get that grin off his face. His good mood made more evident as he paused to say good morning to pretty much everyone who crossed his path. He sat beside me and I assume it's my turn to receive one of those overly peppy good mornings-

"Why hello there Sasuke. Good morning" …Yes it is.

I raised an eyebrow; not really showing my annoyance "What happened?" was all I said, knowing he'd get it. "Gaara's back"

A look of realization invaded my features, but that still wasn't exactly amazing news. Neji had been a bit pissed that Gaara had been out for an extra week, but I'm assuming those emotions and his current giddiness were all because of the bet. So I prodded "And?"

Neji gave me a pointed look, and continued, "I got him flowers, the usual classic. Kiba said he'd be coming back today so I waited at the front of the school."

I had to hold back a laugh and let a smile pass "How'd he react to that?" I'd assumed he would say that Gaara had thrown a fit and punched him in the gut, but the explanation that came was completely different.

**Flashback**

_Neji stood at the now deserted front steps of the school, a calm expression on his face as he waited. Everyone was already inside despite the fact that the bell hadn't rung yet, though the time for the first class to start was nearing. He frowned._

_"Where could he be?" The twelfth grader mumbled to himself. He felt a cold breeze attack his already cold skin, the winter chill still lingering at full power over their school. Neji decided it was best to wait inside, so he shuffled passed the large front doors of the building, and moved to lean on a wall near the entrance._

_Soon enough he saw a flash of red hair invade his sight. 'Gaara!' He noticed the other boy was in a hurry as he sped inside and stopped to catch his breath when he passed the entry doors, not even noticing he was there. Neji smirked 'He probably thought he was really late' and he kind of was, or cutting it close at least._

_The longhaired twelfth grader silently walked up to the redhead, who was now calming down a bit and just as he straightened, Neji placed a gentle hold on his arm. "Gaara" Hes said before pulling the other into a tight and warm embrace. The eleventh grader visibly tensed in his hold, no matter how comfortable it felt. "What the hell?" He yelled, when he caught sight of who'd just hugged him. "Hyuga! What are you-" "Welcome back Gaara. How was your vacation?" Neji cut in, changing Gaara's initial anger and surprise into annoyance and confusion; his hands still resting on the other's shoulders._

_Before he could move them up to cup Gaara's face, the redhead took two steps back. "It was fine… What's it to you, Hyuga?" He tried to put as much attitude as he could into that sentence. "Good to know you had a good time, Gaara. And I asked because I care of course."_

_"You care?" Gaara repeated with an eyebrow raised, his tone dripping with disbelief and suspicion. Neji answered just as quickly._

_"Yes, Gaara, I care. In fact, I've gotten you a present." This time the redhead's eyes narrowed. "I don't know what you're playing at, but-" "Flowers" Neji cut in once again. "Flowers?..." Gaara asked cautiously. Neji took out a box from his backpack and opened it. As if he'd just performed some sort of magic, a beautiful assortment of colorful, vibrant, flowers of varied kinds, came into view. Neji placed the lid on the bottom of the box, and gently took out the huge bouquet._

_"What's this about, Hyuga?" Gaara questioned once again, narrowed eyes growing darker. Neji simply smiled, holding a genuine look of… something the redhead couldn't- or wouldn't place. "This," He gestured to the assortment in his hands, then moved his left hand to place it gently on the other's cheek. "Is about you and I not knowing each other nearly as much as I want us to."_

_In one quick move, his hand came down rest on Gaara's, and guided it forwards, while placing the stems of the bouquet in his hand. The redhead barely registered that half-second move, when the distinctly sounding second bell rang loudly, signifying the very late stance of any student not in their classrooms._

_Gaara's eyes widened as he sped off without a second thought, leaving a smirking twelfth grader behind, and begrudgingly taking notice of the heat in his cheeks. The redhead knew that he had most likely been blushing enough for the other to easily take notice, this caused his mood to worsen considerably. He'd only realized he was still holding Neji's gift to him, when he was halfway to his first class, so he quickly stuffed the many flowers in his backpack as he ran._

_Neji jogged to his first class, thankfull for it's close proximity to the entrance of the school._

**End of flashback**

I'm sure I probably look pretty stupid right now, with my jaw dropped in surprise, but I didn't dwell too much on that. "Pretty surprising of him… And you."

Neji smirked, his satisfied expression looked somewhat smug to me. "Just doing my best, as always. You haven't even really been trying."

I scoffed, remembering my foul mood, just like I did any time I thought of that stupid blonde. "You're lucky. Naruto is the epitome of idiocy! And he is just so infuriating!"

I gritted my teeth in frustration. Lately that idiot has been even more of a pain than usual, I even considered giving u the bet and just killing him right then and there! But my determination and pride wouldn't allow it. Oh no, I would definitely win. Just like I always do!

Neji sighed, seeming to have noticed my inner rant. "Well, what do you usually do?... To win over girls I mean." He added the last part at my questioning look, but it didn't help much as I answered, a bit confused. "Not much. They usually crowd me; I pick, I smile, I charm." You could feel the arrogance dripping from my tone, but who could blame me? I'd never really had to be the one chasing before. Neji rolled his eyes at me and spoke.

"Well…" He seemed to be looking for just the right words to say.

"What do you do when you 'charm' girls?" He made it a point to add air quotes around the word "charm" with his fingers, and smirked. "Just normal flirting, acting casual, complementing, they eat it up."

"Then try that." I made an expression that conveyed complete confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I mean do that. Start from scratch. Flirt. Maybe even start by trying to be friends." I considered and pondered on the idea, and I would've answered, had we not heard a blissful, low chuckle come from in front of me. We looked at Shikamaru, who seemed to be in a daze as he grinned to himself, thinking of god-knows-what.

"Dude, what's up?" I asked as Neji nodded from beside me, looking at him curiously. Shika seemed to snap out of his thoughts when Neji added. "You look extremely… Giddy"

**And so unknowingly, they went on to have a conversation eerily familiar to one that three eleventh graders would have later on in the day.**

* * *

><p>After walking aways from his friends, Naruto and Alexander headed to the library and continued their highspirited conversation. Naruto could've leaped for joy, he was seriously over the moon. Al had given him many great ideas and he'd thrown some in as well. He was pleasantly surprised to see they made a great brainstorming team and son they'd just began talking about basketball in general.<p>

Oh, basketball... Naruto sincerely held a deep love for the sport but he'd never really had anyone to talk to this way about it. He was never really that close to his temmates, his cocaptain hated him and viceversa, and he loved his best riends but he knew they could care less aboutthe sport. And here was Alexander Byers, someone he barely knew, talking to him excitedly as if they'd been close for years, about the thing he loved the most. Naruto was extremely happy for this chance at frienship and was very much looking forwards to inviting the other to sit with him and his friends at lunch.

* * *

><p><strong>Later that day<strong>

The next to last eleventh grade class in the day was almost ending. And, after hearing yet another extremely 'suggary' comment come from his brunette friend, Gaara finally seemed to notice something. His mind backtracked through the day and realized his friend's actions had been exceptionally peppy. Without all the distractions, and now that everything was calm, kiba's odd behavior was made clear.

He quickly looked to his side to see a very giddy brunette chuckling to himself. Gaara observed him for a moment before asking. "What's got you high?" He questioned in a low tone, completely not intending it to sound as harsh as it did. As soon as his friend straightened and gave him a questioning look, he smirked so that it looked more playful. Then the blonde in front of him cut in. "That's what I asked too!"

"Naruto! Pay attention!" Said blonde simply pouted and straightened out in his desk for a moment before turning around and continuing what he'd said before, this time in a much lower voice.

"Kiba's been acting extremely weird ever since he first got to school." Aparently Naruto had just realized this too. He sighed, "You guys don't fill me in at all." He falsely complained, a smile gracing his face. "It makes me seem real nosy when I ask."

The redhead raised an eyebrow as he scoffed "You're nosy all on your own, Naruto." The blonde made no attempt to deny it as they laughed quietly. Their friend pouted, a slight blush on his face. "I'm not being weird… I'm just happy…"

"Happy is something you usually are, but this is something totally different." Gaara corrected.

"Yeah, come on, spill it. What happened?" Naruto added

Kiba let out an awkward chuckle "Nothing really… Uhm, I should pay attention. This is pretty complicated." He said nodding his head in the direction of the board, which Iruka had tasked himself with filling completely. "Wait! Don't erase that!" He yelled as he wrote in his notebook with lightning speed, eager to end the conversation. His two best friends sighed and did the same.

Okay, so Kiba hadn't told them yet. 'It's not a big deal' Kiba tried to convince himself. 'I mean, it's not like I'm really embarrassed about it or anything' and that was true. He was neither embarrassed nor ashamed of his relationship with the twelfth grader, it's just… he didn't know how his friends would react. And he really didn't want to find out.

The brunette's focused expression turned to a worried one. 'I shouldn't hide it though…' Once he wrote the last sentence, his hand ceased its movements. As if on cue, the bell rang. Kiba sighed and put his things away, choosing to stay in a good mood, considering he would soon be calling his boyfriend after school. 'Haha… It feels good to even think of him like that. Shikamaru, my boyfriend..' He really couldn't describe how good that felt.

His friends both got up and as the three of them walked with their group to the last class.

* * *

><p><strong>Important question for your consideration:<strong>

**1. What would you like Shikamaru and Kiba to do on their date? Suggestions are welcome, if not, I'll just go with one of the classics x)**

**2. What do you think happened so very long ago that would spark their enimosity? **

**3. I was thinking, have any of you wondered what any of their sexual preferences actually are? I noticed I hadn't ever really mentioned it before, though I did leave hints here and there. But do you want me to explain it a bit? Or are any of you sure enough to venture your own guesses?**

**I'll go ahead and mention that next time, unless you would rather figure it out on your own. XD**


	9. Texts, Frienship, Gaara's Research

**Very happy to be updating quickly, I have a new system and it seems to be working. If all goes well, expect an update on this in the next five to six days :)**

**ENJOY**

* * *

><p>Shikamaru laid on his back, deeply enjoying the warmth and comfort of his soft bed. He'd, once again, woken up before his alarm clock rang… Oh joy. He would've frowned if not for the calm and bliss he currently felt, not just because of his current surroundings, but also the fact that everything in his life, he considered, was utterly perfect. Or at least, he was satisfied… His eyes moved to look at the alarm clock that rested on his desk, beside the bed.<p>

'5:03 a.m.'

As soon as the numbers registered in Shikamaru's mind, a rather loud yawn escaped him. Bringing up a hand to cover his mouth, he raised his other hand, stretching his sleepy muscles.

After a minute or two the twelfth grader finally deemed himself ready to leave his comfort zone. Placing slightly unsteady feet on the cold floor, he released another yawn and walked to the door of his room, absentmindedly grabbing his towel on the way. He faintly registered sounds, and figured his parents were awake already, but hadn't left their room. Shikamaru continued down the hall and into the bathroom, intent on taking a nice cold shower.

The boy took his time, and when he finally stepped out of the shower, he felt much more awake yet still relaxed. He picked up the towel he'd brought, and began to dry himself. Unlike usually, he'd thought to put his clothes in the bathroom the night before, he really didn't know why he'd done that but he was thankful for his past attentiveness, so now he didn't have to face the cold air outside. When the twelfth grader felt he was dry enough, he slid his clothes on and shuffled out of the bathroom, his towel hanging from his neck and draping across his chest.

Shikamaru made his way down the stairs of his house, to make himself some breakfast, and soon enough, he was headed back upstairs, sated and happy.

A loud shrill ring made the teenager jump slightly as he skipped a few steps to turn his alarm off with a huff. As soon as he did though, a much less irritating sound invaded his senses. Shikamaru looked down to see his phone vibrating on the side of his bed. He picked up the small object and opened it to read the message he'd just received.

"Good morning! Can't wait to see you :D" –Kiba

The boy's eyes widened, and his calm mood took a turn of the best as Shikamaru felt his heart gain speed, and a sudden grin take over his face. Kiba. His Kiba! Had just sent him a good morning message! And a very nice one at that. He brought his other hand up to grasp his phone with both of them as he pondered on what exactly he should reply, his thumbs moving slightly erratically as they hovered over the keyboard. Once his brilliant mind had conjured up something acceptable, they moved like lightning, typing in the words. With a click of 'send', he went to put his shoes on and hurried out the door, yelling a farewell to his parents. He slipped into his car and drove away, eager to see a certain 11th grader once again.

When Shikamaru arrived at the school, way earlier than he'd expected, and parked his car, he new Kiba hadn't arrived yet and figured the 11th grader had texted him right when he woke up. He decided to wait on a bench relatively near the entrance for the younger boy to arrive. Soon enough he saw the familiar brunette coming down the hall, also quite a bit earlier than any student would want to arrive.

Kiba sent him a surprised and loving gaze as soon as his eyes landed on the taller boy. When they got closer, Kiba spoke. "You have no idea how much that little text affected me." He laughed, a slight reddening in his cheeks, barely noticeable unless you stand immensely close to him, just as the12th grader was right now. Kiba thought back to the good morning text he sent on a whim, only to receive a ' "Good morning, love. Can't wait to kiss you" ' text from the older boy. That had left him quite rattled.

"I meant it" Was all the 12th grader said before his lips crashed onto Kiba's in a passionate, soft kiss. Shikamaru brought his hands up to rest on Kiba's face, gently circling his thumbs against the other's cheeks, then slid one hand behind Kiba's head into his hair. As if by instinct, the younger's arms wound around his neck and his lips parted, this taken as an invitation, Shikamaru's tongue darted in almost immediately deepening the searing kiss. They enjoyed the tastes provided by each other and, amidst the low moans and ruffling, both knew they'd never forget this one blissfull moment.

Far too soon for their liking, it had to end, as they were in need of breath. They separated, both panting softly, faces slightly flushed. The pair reluctantly stepped away from each other, but not before Shikamaru spoke, leaning to rest his forehead on Kiba's and cupping his cheeks. "I could get used to this…" At that, Kiba chuckled softly, bringing his hands up to rest on Shikamaru's as he nodded.

"Yeah…" Kiba said as he leaned in to kiss the other once more, this one for a shorter amount of time, but no lesser amount of love.

Soon enough though, they separated completely and walked down the pretty much empty halls passing a few students now and then, as they continued to talk, determined to remain together until classes started.

* * *

><p>Naruto entered the eleventh grade's homeroom relatively on time, seeing as the class was only just about to start, and quickly scanned the room to see if he could spot any of his best friends. He grinned widely when he noticed Gaara and Alexander talking, and began walking to them. 'They're getting along!' He thought excitedly, very happy that the prospects of befriending the fellow basketball player were now growing. He was only able to hear the tail bit of their conversation, not enough to understand, before they looked his way. "Hey, guys! What's up?" He grinned and they returned it with smiles of their own.<p>

"Not much. Gaara here was telling me how wonderful his Hawaian Christmas vacation was."

"Ooh, that." Naruto laughed. His friend had already recounted it for him and Kiba, but god forbid he'd waste a chance to recall those great memories for someone else.

"It was so relaxing-" Gaara began once again "But Al said that it wasn't 'traditional' or 'Christmassy'." He signaled the air quotes around the two words in a slightly mocking tone.

"Because they're not." Alexander cut in with a laugh. Naruto chuckled as well and added "I don't care if it's for Christmas or Halloween, Hawaii is Hawaii and I was jealous as hell when he first said he was going to stay there. "

Alexander hummed "Naruto, I didn't even know you were capable of jealousy" He feigned surprise, when Gaara cut in, "Oh he is, he hides it well though."

"Hides what?" The three of them looked towards their smirking brunette friend and would have clued him in, if the teacher hadn't spoken up that class had now begun. The four of them looked at Iruka for only a moment before they looked back at each other and Naruto spoke with a chuckle "Tell you in a bit, Kiba" Said brunette was rather curious now but wasn't about to risk staying in place, knowing Naruto would whisper it to him later. The group of friends moved from where they stood and each took their seats.

* * *

><p>Sasuke groaned silently, glaring at the notebook on his desk, which was filled to the brim, so he turned the page and continued reading the questions the large book he held had to offer. He was gladly almost done with the assigned work and he allowed his eyes to drift upwards to the clock that hung inches above the white-board, letting out a sigh when he realized his second class would be ending soon.<p>

Just as he finished writing the very last sentence in his abused notebook, the bell rang. Sasuke stood, just as everyone else, and walked with a group of students to the front of the class, handing his notebook for the teacher to sign. As soon as it was returned, he jogged out of the classroom, catching up to his best friends in the flurry of students. "Hey, since when has that class been so damn hard?"

His friends laughed, "I found that relatively simple actually," Neji said. Though Shikamaru cut in "Yeah right. After you asked me the answers to how many questions?" Sasuke's eyes widened a bit as they laughed.

"Ugh, why didn't I think of that?!"

Neji smirked "Well I'm a natural born opportunist so don't be too mad at yourself."

They heard a bit of laughter coming from a girl in their grade, who had just walked up next to Sasuke.

"Natural born cheater, more like. You can borrow my notes if you want Sasuke, but I guarantee nothing." Tenten slapped the raven's back twice in good will, as Neji smiled and added "Opportunist sounds better" This earned a chuckle from the rest of them as they continued walking to their next class.

" I think I just might take you up on that, Ten." Sasuke spoke up to the girl, who smiled in return "Okay, but seriously, I guarantee absolutely nothing." She fished for her notebook in her backpack, and when she finally grasped it, she pulled it out and handed it to him. "Here you go."

Sasuke took it gratefully "Thanks. I'll have it back to you tomorrow morning." With a nod, the twelfth grade class walked into their third class of the day.

When Sasuke took his seat, his long-haired friend turned to him. "What's up with that?" The raven smirked, instantly knowing what he meant. "What?" He asked innocently, though his friend gave him a cut-the-crap look and he quickly added. "Didn't you and Tenten break up like three months ago?" Neji looked a bit put off, but replied. "Well yes, we're just friends now, but I'm not asking because of that. You think she's into you?" Sasuke thought it over for a moment. It was a valid question, seeing as she wasn't usually that kind towards guys like him, who went from partner to partner. Not to mention the fact that he was the best friend of the guy, she'd dated for over a year and hadn't really talked to in months.

"Hmmm, don't think so, she's just nice. Besides she's not my type." Sasuke smirked at Neji's 'hmph'. Even though he was over her, she had still been his girlfriend back then. "My type is too good for you" It was Neji's turn to smirk, as he watched Sasuke roll his eyes.

"Aaanyways… I don't want to date anyone… Not when I've got a bet to win." Sasuke grinned. Neji simply smiled in reply "As do I… So what have you done for it?"

The raven sighed, "Not much, I mean I know I've done a few things before, but he probably thinks it was a fluke. It pretty much was, seeing as I just wanted to see how he'd react. So now, I just want to… befriend him. I got a lot of bad marks with him, so I want to wipe them out and then start fresh."

Neji nodded "Seems like a very good plan." Then he added with a smirk "Of course, I suggested it so it must be good." He joked, then laughed even more when Sasuke said something like "It sounds so much better when I say it, though."

He couldn't get out a retort, as the teacher passed closed to them and sent them pointed looks, before continuing the lesson.

* * *

><p>Gaara sighed as he wrote down several important points of information about the chapter he was doing his partnered project on, Kiba was seated next to him, intent on getting every detail down on paper.<p>

His mind kept wandering, and soon his eyes did as well. A few seats in front them, he noticed, sat Alexander and Naruto, in a stirring conversation he couldn't hear but he knew they were steadily becoming more and more comfortable with each other. Gaara couldn't bring his mind to delve any more into the pair's new friendship, as his gaze cut across everything currently visible to him, resting his chin on the palm of his hand. He continued writing.

Yesterday had been an odd day, the red head thought. When he went home, he'd somehow been roped into a long conversation with his sister about a certain gift he'd received.

' "What exactly do you do when a guy gives you flowers?" ' He remembered asking her this question absentmindedly. Without even meaning to, he'd revealed the very fact he wished hadn't existed in the first place. Temari had been shocked at first that he had come to HER for advice, but quickly recovered with a grin. "Someone gave you flowers?! That's cute, though why wouldn't you know what to do?"

It had taken a moment for him to reply because of his initial scare at her outburst, and the fact that he berated himself for a minute or two for his verbal slip.

"uh… He's not exactly… my type..." He provided those words as another version of the fact that he hated Neji's guts. Or well, at least he kept telling himself he still did. If he were to be honest though, Gaara knew it was more of an odd dislike that he held for the boy, but that's all he was willing to admit now.

After that, Gaara recalled, Temari had walked to the table he was sitting at and taken a seat next to him, a confused expression on her face. "He's not older?"

"Well yes, he's in 12th grade but-" she cut in

"Is he a brunette? Is he tall?"

Gaara's eyes narrowed slightly "Yes and yes, but-"

"He's not smart? You like them very forward, so is that the problem, that he's not?"

"No-I mean he's pretty smart and…" Gaara remembered feeling his face heat up in embarrassment "He's very forward…" 'The bastard'

"What's the problem then?" She had asked, honestly confused.

Gaara scribbled down another point of information, as his mind recalled the conversation. He remembered sighing loudly when she asked him that. He'd then stood; ready to go lock himself in his room when she'd grabbed him. "Is he not…attractive? Or is it simply that you are not interested in this person who's totally your type and show's quite a bit of interest in you? Well either way, to answer your first question, I would probably consider it, seeing as he must have some sort of interest in you if he gave flowers to you. If you're not sure, ask around. Find out a bit more about him, and how he treats people you know?"

The redhead looked down at his sister in frustration as her questions and advice flew all over his head, successfully preventing any type of coherent speech. "I- He's not- I mean, not really… I can't just… " After a moment of silence, Gaara sighed "Sister, would you kindly let go of me and let me storm of to my room now?"

She smiled knowing he was in fact closer to figuring out whatever he needed to, and spoke, ignoring his attitude. "Sure, little brother. Come to me any time you want to talk a bit more."

A small cracking sound snapped him out of his memories, and Gaara looked down to see the tip of his pencil was broken, so he threw it in his backpack and took out another one without a second thought; erasing the scribble he'd written on his paper from pressuring his pencil too much, and continued the work.

'I suppose I could ask someone, just to find out his motives, but who the hell would I ask? And how would I phrase it? I mean I can't just say anything! I most certainly can't tell the truth….' Gaara considered the almost ridiculous possibility of asking the twelfth grader's best friends, but threw the idea out as soon as he got it. Soon, he let out a quiet huff

'Whatever… I'm being stupid. I'll just get everything back to normal. That's it! Normal is good. And I know just how to do it. Or at least how to begin' Gaara smirked at his simple but fun new idea.

* * *

><p>Lunchtime was a blessing in Sasuke's opinion, as he walked-more like ran- to the eleventh grade's third class. He'd somehow managed to get there right as the 11th graders began crowding the hall. He looked around over the huge group of people in slight frustration until he saw a familiar head of short blonde hair.<p>

"Naruto!" He called, making the boy wave to his friends who continued walking to the lunchroom, and turn around to look at him. It didn't take long for him to hold an annoyed expression when he realized who'd called him.

"What do you want?" He snapped and Sasuke forced himself to smile, "I need to talk to you" Naruto looked at him cautiously "Is this another _game_ thing?" He said, referring to the supposedly important information the older boy had 'forgotten' before Christmas vacation.

"Ah, good memory." Sasuke said sheepishly "And no, it's not, I just want to talk to you…" The raven said, opting for honesty this time. Naruto seemed to consider it before conceding and walking opposite of the crowd of students heading to the lunchroom, with him. "What is it?" Naruto said, much calmer this time.

Sasuke considered his words carefully "Why do you hate me?" He chose to start this way. Naruto's eyes widened, and his jaw slackened a bit "I don't-well…" The blonde looked forwards once again, face scrunched up in confusion. When the silence lasted too long for Sasuke's liking, he added. "I mean we've always disliked each other. I don't even remember why, and I doubt you do either. So I'm wondering why… Seeing as I… want to be friends with you." He chose his words carefully.

Blue eyes widened once again, as Naruto looked to his side, though they quickly narrowed in suspicion "Is this some sort of joke?"

"No! Not at all." Sasuke answered immediately. And, knowing Naruto was going to have to think about it, and wouldn't give him an instant reply, he said, "Just consider it okay? Being friends with me I mean… I'd really love it if you would accept." With a soft smile, he walked off, leaving Naruto in silence.

* * *

><p>An urgent student council meeting had been held because a teacher needed help with loads of grading and paperwork, so the slightly ticked off members sat in said teacher's classroom, giving up a part of their lunchtime. They all made a note to complain about this later, or at least get a couple of favors for their groups.<p>

All that could be heard in the 'student council meeting' was the scribbling of pencils against papers as they worked, intent on finishing as soon as possible. They'd arranged the desks in a circle around the teacher's desk and Gaara sat two seats down on the right of it. Their council president was seated the same but on the left, directly in front of the redhead, this infuriated him; probably more than it should. Every now and again, Gaara felt his eyes involuntarily shift upwards, to take peeks at the object of his frustration.

He silently apologized to any student he might have flunked with his distraction. Tough they should blame Neji. HE sure as hell would. A shuffling was heard as some students switched to other papers. The redhead's eyes narrowed 'Focus, Gaara, Focus!'

Soon enough, he had gotten into the rhythm of things and flipped from paper to paper. Though, it didn't last as long as he would've wanted to, as he got rather curious as to what the older boy was doing, even if he knew they were all doing the exact same thing. Gaara finally promised himself to look only one more time and then focus.

Green eyes slowly shifted upwards, to meet lavender ones. Neji had felt like someone was watching him, so he decided to look up, and he was glad he did because the redhead had chosen that exact moment to look at him. Gaara's eyes widened a bit and he froze before Neji reacted.

Unbeknownst to anyone except Gaara, the twelfth grader silently brought a hand up to his mouth and blew a kiss his way, smiled, and got back to work. The simple action had Gaara's eyes like saucers, his mouth agape, and he forced himself to look back at his papers and calm his racing heart. Still refusing to acknowledge the reaction Neji had caused in him.

As soon as they finished the work, the council shuffled out of the classroom, heading for the lunchroom. Gaara had stayed behind so that he didn't have to run into Neji and, as he made his way out of the room he heard a bit of giggling. He looked to the side to see council member, Ino, talking to a pink haired girl he knew to be named Sakura. They laughed on about something and spoke somewhat loudly, getting his attention as he walked to the lunchroom many steps behind them.

"Did you hear that Shikamaru is interested in an 11th grader?"

"Yeah… I heard it was a boy."

"Yes, I heard that too! Then again, I also heard it was an 18 year old woman who flunked a bunch of classes, and then I heard it was actually a teacher he was interested in, so what can you believe?" They chuckled at her statement and quickly changed the subject to another rumor involving a group of tenth graders, but the redhead zoned out after that. Gaara remembered a certain suspicion he had before Christmas vacation, but he had long since discarded it, so he allowed himself to ponder a bit on the possibility of it being true, before deciding he had bigger problems and took his mind off the subject. He quickly walked into the lunchroom, intent on enjoying what was left of his lunch.

The redhead walked into the room that was less crowded than usual, considering it was pretty late to be having lunch. His friends weren't even there anymore. He hurried over to the almost nonexistent lunch line, and stood next to a girl he didn't care to recognize. As the line moved though, she spoke. "Hey, I don't think we've met properly before… You're Gaara right?"

His uncaring eyes looked directly at her for the first time and they widened a bit before he could steel himself. "Oh, yeah… You're…"

"Tenten" She finished for him with a smile. Gaara would've gasped, had he not controlled himself. This was the girl he'd seen so many times with his longhaired nuisance until not too long ago. He was sure she had been the boy's girlfriend. This was his chance! And he didn't want to blow it so he spoke quickly, before his extended silence could weird her out.

"You were Hyuga's girlfriend right" This time it was she who looked a bit surprised, if only slightly put off. "Uh… yeah" She said "He a friend of yours?"

"I prefer acquaintance" He somewhat agreed with her, if only to keep talking. "Out of curiosity, why did you break up with him?" Gaara was half expecting to get slapped for his bluntness but also half expecting her to answer with many harsh complaints about that longhaired jerk. He couldn't help but smirk as soon as he asked the question, really excited to hear the latter.

Though none of his expectations came to be as she sent him a nostalgic smile and looked forwards to nowhere in particular. "We both decided to end our relationship, because we were no longer in love. We had been attracted to each other and enjoyed our time together, but after being together for a year, we began to notice how much better we were as friends, and how we wanted to see other people. So we broke up."

Gaara seemed unsatisfied "But there must've been something sour there, you can't tell me there isn't _one_ thing you'd yell at him for right now if you could." ...Oh he was begging to be slapped, the redhead thought, but the hit never came.

"Really, I can't think of anything I regret about my time with him, and our break up was rather easy."

The 11th grader's eyes narrowed in confusion and only slight desperation at trying to find a flaw. "But-" "Gaara." She laughed, cutting into his argument. "When Neji gets interested in someone, like _really_ interested, he can make you feel like a princess and it's a great feeling. He's smart enough to know that he has to work hard for his feelings to be returned, and that if he wants your love he has to earn it. And he will try his hardest, because he's stubborn like that. So no, Gaara, I have no regrets." She threw one last grin his way before turning to the lunch lady and getting her food, leaving a speechless redhead to watch her go. "Are you going to order?" The elderly woman's question snapped him out of his daze and he turned to her, eyes still narrowed, as he got his food and grudgingly walked to take a random seat.

'…Damn that perfect bastard…'

* * *

><p>A humongous current of students crowded the entrance of the school after classes ended, as usual, everyone eager to get to the comfort of their homes. Some had to walk, some rode with their parents, a lucky few even had their own cars. Kiba Inuzuka, on the other hand, had gotten a ride from a certain twelfth grader who apparently had made it his mission to ensure that the younger would <em>never<em> have to walk anywhere again. As the car came to a stop in front of the brunette's house, Kiba turned to the older boy, placing a gentle kiss on his lips. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Shikamaru didn't let them be separated for too long as he brought a hand to rest on the back of Kiba's head, gently pulling the willing boy closer to him and into another long kiss. The 12th grader reasoned that he'd so easily gotten addicted to the tastes of the boy currently in his embrace. They shared many short kisses, crashing their lips together again and again. Though soon, Shikamaru felt a hand on his chest, barely pushing him. They separated once again and Kiba chuckled.

"Mom will notice your car parked out front for too long, she's likely looking out the window trying to see inside it right now." Shikamaru sighed in contentment, but also in slight disappointment at having him leave. "Okay. See you tomorrow."

With that, Kiba opened the car door and stepped out, chancing a last wave back at the older boy who waved back and running into his house.

* * *

><p><strong>1. No one protested it so I get to explain it now xD Considering I don't think I'll mention many of these in the actual story, I want you all to know these things because some will help you understand some characters' motivations later on:<strong>

**First of all, as mentioned already in the story, Gaara is bisexual here. His tastes have always been clear to those closest to him. Second, Naruto is gay, haven't revealed much of that yet. Kiba is bisexual, though i don't think i'll ever mention it. Sasuke is straight, so you can see why 'wooing' Naruto is a whole new world for him. Shikamaru's preferences will probably never be mentioned seeing as he's more 'unclassified'. The first and only person he's ever liked was Kiba(he's liked him for quite a long time), who was obviously a boy, so he just figured himself gay. Neji is straight but had been extremely curious when he found out his best friend liked a boy, even more so when he found out it was Kiba, and even _more _more so when he began participating in the bet. **

**2. Thank you very much for your suggestions on the ShikaKiba date. I really like them! :3 And they are still welcome since the date will wait a few more chapters, considering i'm going day by day. If you're curious, in this chapter, it is tuesday January 15. :D**


	10. Naruto's Desicion, A Discovery

I scribbled in my notebook, like I always did when I was bored and alone, passing time. I figured I'd get some research in this morning seeing as Al and I had decided to get the most info we could on our own, and then meet to discuss everything. So here I sat, in a nearly empty library, accompanied only by a few other suckers who were also persuaded into getting up unbearably early. I look around, a lazy frown on my face as my eyes land on the clock that lay on the librarian's desk.

'He said he'd meet me here though... Well, he said he'd 'probably' meet me here'

I rolled my eyes, a little annoyed at the prospect of being alone for the next half hour before people actually start to arrive, slightly resenting the diligent school for even being open this early. I'd never liked being alone. Blame it on the fact that I get bored easily, I guess. Soon enough, I was unable to fight the urge to stand up and walk around, so I decided to look for more books on the subject I'm working on.

As I walked deeper in between the bookshelves, I noticed they appear to get thicker and older the further I went. And when I finally stopped to pick out a smaller book that seemed interesting enough, I considered heading to my stash to get a light snack, but thought better of it and simply walked back to my seat.

I stopped short though, when I got close enough to the desk, I saw someone I seriously felt like avoiding, and considered straight up bolting out of here since he hadn't noticed me yet. 'No, he probably saw my backpack and that's why he stopped here so-' my mental debate was cut off when he looked at me and threw me a sideways smile. I visibly flinched but recovered quickly and grinned back, walking up to him awkwardly. "Uh, hey, Uch-" "Sasuke. That's my name" I gave him a look that said I-know-your-name, and considered voicing it but simply chose to let it be.

"Tch, ah, well…Sasuke," The name sounds so weird when I actually say it! I almost laugh at myself, but continue. "What are you doing here?" He doesn't react much and sits down next to the chair I had been using all this time. I eyed him cautiously, bitting back the unspeakable urge to ask him who the hell invited him to sit… Wow, Gaara's attitude must be rubbing off on me… haha I kind of like it. It feels cool.

After a moment, I noticed he was still smiling up at me, waiting for me to take the seat next to him. I figure I might as well since I'd been sitting there before he came.

"I was just passing by when I noticed your backpack here… Thought it was odd, that's all." I hummed in response deciding I should get back to work; I pick up the pencil and start jotting down information again, occasionally looking at him from the corner of my eye. Sasuke had propped his chin on his palm and was looking forward, seemingly to nowhere in particular. He looked bored, or pensive, or confused? I don't know if it's the fact that I'm looking at him from the corner of my eye or that he's just plain hard to read, but I can't tell what he's thinking. Thankfully, I looked back at my notebook like a second or two before turned his head to me.

"You're researching, right? Is it for professor Shizune?" I nodded with a low groan and continued working; he took it as an invite to continue. "Yeah, she can be a hard ass. My group got a huge assignment from her too, though ours is in pairs-" "mine is too." I finally spoke, somewhat smiling at that. This seemed to peak his interest. "Really? Who're you paired with? Why aren't they here?" I looked at him with a grin,

"Al-exander" I added the rest of the name realizing Sasuke wouldn't know whom I was talking about if I just said Al. "Byers? Since when do you two hang out?" He asked, honestly curious. "Just recently. Since when do _we_ hang out" I retorted with an aggressive grin, just a bit put off, but not really that annoyed. I was curious to see how he'd react, but I actually did get annoyed when all he did was smirk. "Just recently." He said smugly… well at least to me it sounded smug. "I never answered you, so I don't know what you mean." I looked down at the notebook and continued my work.

He followed my gaze, watching me write, "Well if I'm not mistaken, this is considered hanging out so while I wait for your answer, I'd love to enjoy your company."

I blinked and looked back up at him, a confused pout on my face "What have you been smoking? " I couldn't help but ask that. His reaction admittedly surprised me. I saw his eyes widen a bit before he laughed. "What, can't I be nice to you?" At my cautious look, he smirked. "Look, Naruto, I figure I've been an ass to you for a while and you've been… rather un-agreeable to me too." I snorted at that and held in a laugh, silently commending him for his choice of words since he was obviously trying not to tick me off. He continued "But as I told you before, I want to put an end to that. So what do you say? Want to spend time with me this weekend? Maybe this time you'll approve and I can actually say we 'hung out' without you looking like you want to slap me."

To my utter shock, I actually did laugh this time. "Well I can't guarantee that but-"

"Hey Naruto… Captain?" We both turned to where the voice came from and I grinned "Hey Al! Where've you been?" I stood, and heard Sasuke do the same, though I didn't look at him. I noticed Al wasn't looking at me, and had a firm gaze set right next to me. I was about to ask what was up but Al suddenly looked at me with a smile, "Sorry, I had a bit of a slow start this morning. And now I show up to this." He chuckled "Quite surprising to see our wonderful co-captains so chummy…"

"Oh yes… Well stranger things have happened." I heard a reply come from beside me, and once again; Al's gaze was off me. "I highly doubt that. You two are like cat and mouse at all the team practices." I grinned at that, wrongfully assuming that was just a playful comment. "I'm the cat then" A picture of me chasing a mouse-Sasuke flashed through my head and I chuckled.

This made Sasuke look at me; I could've sworn I saw surprise in his expression- if only for a moment- before he smirked.

"Nah, I think I'd be the cat." He responded and I met his gaze defiantly, "Doubt it! I'd make a way better cat than you… you know, in this case." My grin fell a bit, still slightly confused at having said that, and Sasuke smiled. I heard a laugh come from my side "Now that I think about it, it's not that surprising after all." Al walked up to me and threw an arm over my shoulders before turning to Sasuke, who'd returned to that unreadable expression he'd had when I first saw him here.

"Naruto and I should be going now, we're gonna be late for class" I looked at Al curiously for a second before I saw the clock once again and realized that was very true. "Oh shit!" I quickly turned to pick up all my things and fling my backpack over my shoulder, "We'll talk later, kay?" I told Sasuke, not waiting for an answer before grabbing Al's hand and pulling him into a dash, off to the first class which we were definitely going to be late to.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed, but other than that, held no other expression. He calmly picked up his backpack before walking to his first class, since he was pretty sure he'd get there right when Mr. Hatake would.

* * *

><p>"mmm" Kiba moaned softly, his lips moving fast, and rather roughly against Shikamaru's. The older boy had his right hand deep in Kiba's hair the other resting firmly on the 11th grader's thigh, occasionally tightening and moving. The couple sat outside the school, in the 12th grader's parked car. Kiba had moved to the driver's seat, with one leg bent to kneel beside Shikamaru's and the other extended a bit to touch the floor near the brake, for better leverage, his arms wrapped around the other boy's neck. It was an odd position, but neither seemed to mind.<p>

They separated for serious lack of air, and Shikamaru whispered, still catching his breath. "Love… you" He said in between breaths, making Kiba grin softly, bringing his other leg up to a kneeling position as well, so that now he was pretty much sitting on Shikamaru's lap.

"Why do I never get tired of hearing that?" He nestled his head into Shikamaru's neck when he replied. "Because you love me too?" Kiba laughed "Oh yeah, I think that was it" He played along, tightening his arms around the 12th grader. They sat there, in pleasant silence, completely content. Soon enough though, Shikamaru sighed, obviously not wanting to say what he was about to.

"We should be heading out now, or you'll be late." This made the other boy reluctantly loosen his grip on him and trace his hands on Shikamaru's shirt, lowering them to his abdomen and resting them there. Kiba looked at him for a moment before, again reluctantly, checking his watch. "I've still got like nine or ten minutes."

Shikamaru laughed a bit "Just enough time for you to go to your locker, get your things, and walk to class… Come on, I'll accompany you."

Kiba grinned at that and Shikamaru placed a hand on his check leaning in for a quick peck on the lips before Kiba moved to exit the car, with Shikamaru following him out. They did everything the twelfth grader had mentioned before and found themselves in front of the 11th grade homeroom before they knew it.

Kiba checked his watch "See! Two minutes to spare" Shikamaru smiled "Just enough time for me to get to MY class." They laughed and Shikamaru waved a quick goodbye before going on his way. Kiba grinned and walked into the classroom, sitting next to Gaara, talking to his friend until the teacher began their class and laughing later on when Naruto entered the classroom running, with Alexander in tow, yelling "We're here!" and startling the students who sat near the door.

Classes continued as usual.

* * *

><p>A cheerful, melodic laugh resounded in the silent library, only to be shushed by a rather aggravated librarian. Naruto simply laughed on though, this time a bit more silently, refusing to let go of his great mood. "I bet you would, why didn't they tell you?" He said with a chuckle. The boy across from him joined into his laughter,<p>

"They didn't want to embarrass me." Alexander explained, making the blonde chuckle even more.

The pair was currently in their third class of the day, and they'd asked for permission to go to the library for research. A few other pairs joined them and were dutifully spread all over the library. After a long period of writing and reading, they'd jotted down the last fact and deemed themselves ready for a break. From then on, Alexander and Naruto had recalled many stories and spoke of several subjects. Likes, dislikes; good times, bad times; everything spilled out naturally. Right now, the slightly taller boy had informed Naruto of an embarrassing experience he'd had with his family and, when the blonde finally seemed to calm down, Alexander spoke. "Fine fine, well you've had you're fun, now it's your turn."

Naruto grinned "Like hell! I didn't ask you to tell me that"

The other just brought his two hands up and placed them together, as if reading for prayer, and threw the blonde his most charming smile. "Come on, please?" Alexander's stare was unrelenting, and after a moment or two, the blonde groaned.

"Okay fine! Well… uhm…" Surprisingly, nothing came to mind as the blonde searched his mind for a good story. "I… Can't think of anything." He looked at the other who held a mix of disappointment and amusement in his expression. "Ah well that's lame then." Alexander grinned widely at Naruto's pout. "Don't blame yourself though, not everyone can have such entertaining stories-" "Oh shut it I'll think of something!" The blonde grinned at the promise, but the library's door opening paused their conversation. At the sight of their teacher, both boys looked down to the books on their desk and continued their work.

The woman casually walked by all the pairs, occasionally correcting anything she saw wrong and answering questions the students had. After a few more minutes of silence passed between them, Alexander stood to ask the teacher something about references and citations. Naruto looked up at the movement but quickly returned to work and more silence ensued. After that, the teacher stepped out quietly and the eleventh grader walked back to his seat in front of Naruto, sitting down with a huff.

"Ugh, I can't wait till lunch." As if on cue, his stomach growled comically, earning a chuckle from the blonde. "I can tell." The other simply groaned and kept writing, so Naruto continued, "By the way, do you want to come eat lunch with us?" He'd been meaning to ask but never got around to it. Alexander's eyes widened for a moment, before another one of his signature smiles adorned his face. "I was wondering when you'd ask. It's always just the three of you so I didn't want to join you guys without being asked to."

"Well you've been asked." Naruto chuckled a bit and would've probably thought of a way to use this to tease the other, but an idea came to him. "But you're hungry now right?" He brightened, when Alexander gave a slow nod, "Uh yeah?"

Naruto stood quickly, a knowing grin on his face. "I owe you a story, but I'll give you something better: A secret" This seemed to catch the other boy's attention instantly. The blonde looked around as if checking to make sure no one would see them, and motioned for the other to follow him before taking light steps deeper into the large library. They rounded corners and walked to the end of the rows, a route Naruto knew very well. Alexander got more and more curious the further they walked.

"uhm… Naru-" "Shh!" He raised an eyebrow at being shushed by the usually loud blonde. On last turn and they'd arrived at the spot. Alexander watched as Naruto knelled down to pull out many books, wondering where this was going. His eyes widened in interest when he saw the boy pull out a pretty large box from the back of the shelf. He kneeled down next to Naruto for a better view as to the mysterious box, and grinned when it was opened.

"Woah!" Snacks, junk food, and candy of all types littered the inside of the container to the brim. Naruto laughed, "I present to you: my stash. I'll allow you to take two things so choose wisely." Alexander found himself instantly picking up a bag of his favorite chips there and a stuffing pack of gum into his pocket. He opened it silently as the blonde put the treasure box away. Alexander leaned on the bookshelf behind him and threw a hand full of chips into his mouth. "Since when have you kept this here?" Naruto grinned, "Since my parents went on a health kick long ago and totally banned everything tasty." He said with feigned sadness. They laughed a bit and Alexander soon smirked "I suppose you don't want me telling anyone about this?"

"That's generally the gist of things called secrets"

"Aaand I guess you wouldn't want me taking anything from here? Other than this I mean." He raised the bag of chips a bit. Naruto smirked "Not unless you'd _like_ your hands cut off."

Alexander chuckled "Okay okay, I solemnly swear not to touch your lovely box again… Unless you give me permission, of course."

This time Naruto smiled "I wouldn't count on that ever happening, but good to know."

They chatted there a bit more, until Alexander finished his snack. He put the back in his pocket for later disposal and they stood, walking back to their desk. As soon as they sat down, Naruto noticed Gaara and Kiba walk into the library-likely to get a book for their assignment- and called them over so they could all work together.

It took about twenty minutes for the lunch bell to ring and the four of them all but ran out of the library, in favor of stuffing themselves and talking about whatever happened to come to mind with their friends.

* * *

><p>"Oh I'm sure you'll be surprised at the outcome" Gaara said, pushing the lunchroom doors open. They walked to sit down at their favorite table and wait for the lunch line to shorten.<p>

"Hey now, it's not that surprising!" Kiba yelled "I can beat Naru at arm wrestling any day!" He added with a grin. "Really now? You sound pretty confident about that." Alexander smiled and Gaara cut in, a smirk clear on his face. "With good reason"

The blonde in question didn't seem too pleased "Not _any_ day… I'm sure I'll win if I actually try." Kiba snorted, "So you haven't been trying?" Naruto grinned, "Oh you'll know when I try!" Again, Kiba just scoffed and continued his teasing "Yeah right! Don't believe him Al, he's a sore loser."

Alexander laughed along with them and would have replied, had someone not grabbed hold of his arm "Hey Byers, You got a minute?"

Asked a person who seemed to be from the ninth grade class. The eleventh grader smiled in reply. "Help with math?"

The other boy looked sheepish for a moment as he spoke "The teacher said to ask you…" Alexander nodded and turned to the trio, bidding a quick farewell and saying he'd be back later.

"Al always seems busy doesn't he?" Gaara noted as soon as they had their gazes back on each other.

"Ah, since he's pretty approachable and smart, he gets asked for help with tutoring a lot." Naruto said as he munched on the food he'd brought from home. "Ah yeah, people like that get asked for help a lot. Like Shikamaru.." Kiba added casually, still hesitating telling his friends about the 12th grader's new relationship. He observed his friends as one raised an eyebrow and scoffed, and the other seemed unfazed while he munched on more food. "Yeah that guy's pretty damn smart." The blonde mumbled as he swallowed, making Kiba smile and Gaara frown a bit, raising an eyebrow in suspicion at Naruto. "But he's really lazy, so i doubt people ask him for things like that." At Naruto's nod and grin, Gaara turned back to Kiba, a satisfied smirk on his face.

Kiba, on the other hand, let out a slightly awkward laugh, "Ahh yeah i guess.." He was admittedly dissapointed at the bit of truth behind what Gaara had just said, and choose give his own input.

"I'd never say yes to stuff like that either, way too much hassle..." Kiba pondered, and for a moment he wondered if Shikamaru was beginning to rub off on him, though his mind couldn't linger on that for too long as he glanced at the lunch line "Oh! It's shorter!" And he quickly bolted to join it, eager to leave this subject behind.

There was a moment of silence where Naruto chewed on his lunch and Gaara pondered the benefits of standing up to go get some food of his own. Tough he decided better of it when a thought came to him. He looked at the blonde sitting across from him. "Hey, I forgot to tell you, I set up something for Hyuga"

The meer thought of it brought a grin to the redhead's face and a curious look to Naruto's. "Yeah, you said you were gonna do some simple pranks right?" This time the blonde's grin appeared, albeit it was much more playful than the other's was. "You know I have some itching powder you can borrow! And a sneezing spray thingy too! And-"

"I'll keep that in mind." Gaara cut in, feeling slightly bad for a certain Uchiha that happened to suffer through the admittedly creative blonde's pranks… Nah, not really. Gaara grinned even more if it was possible.

"Actually, sure. Give me everything you've got." They chuckled a bit and Gaara added, "So what have you done lately? Usually you'd be the first one bragging your latest duckass's torture." His eyes narrowed in confusion when Naruto blinked and hesitated. "I've been… Taking a break"

At that, the redhead smirked "Giving up already?" "No!" Came an instant reply. "It's just… I want to focus in the practices and I bug him, sure, but I'm just kinda-"

"Check it out, tacos!" Kiba's excited yell startled both of them and Naruto silently thanked his taco-loving friend for the outburst. The brunette sat down and loudly dropped his plate on the table wasting no time in beginning his feast.

"Are there any left?" Gaara asked and Kiba nodded. " You better hurry though" Kiba spoke between munches and the redhead stood to go get his own, his friend's odd behavior temporarily forgotten.

Naruto watched in silence as his friend stuffed himself with food, obviously completely lost to the world at the moment. So he took it as a good chance to think. He folded his arms over the table and rested his head in them, eyes closing as he did so.

'He is pretty much trying to befriend me, in his own weird way. But there's this bet," Naruto was not a good loser, his friends had a point at that, he thought. 'And my friends…' He imagined the outright conniption Gaara would have if he found out about his so-called friendship 'and then there's the fact that I _do_ enjoy messing with him' Unbeknownst to the world, Naruto held a wide grin and held back a laugh.

'I think… I'll keep up the pranks. It's way too fun to just give up like that…. And since when have I, Naruto Uzumaki, been known to lose?!'

_Other than at arm wrestling_, his mind reminded, and he suddenly straightened, earning a curious look from his friend. He was more determined than ever now, to accomplish two things!: First, to demand a arm wrestling rematch! Second…

To Win. This. Bet!

* * *

><p>Sasuke was currently sitting at behind a desk in the back of a rather crowded classroom. Apparently everyone and their mother decided to come hang out in this one room, Sasuke thought grimly, rather annoyed that his silence was interrupted. He'd been calmly reading one of his favorite books, leaning back and balancing the chair on its hind-legs as he rested his feet on the table when, slowly but surely, in came a frenzy of students from eighth to twelfth grade and destroyed his focus.<p>

Sasuke glared slightly as he turned another page of the rather large book and read a few more sentences before deeming it impossible to concentrate, and slamming it shut. He was about to stuff it in his backpack when a voice interrupted his movements. "There you are." Sasuke looked his way, just as Neji sat down, with Shikamaru following closely behind.

"Odd to find you in such a loud place" Shikamaru noted, looking around uncaringly as he sat down too, though they didn't get much time to settle in.

"That's exactly what I was thinking" Sasuke agreed and stood "Come on. Let's get out of here."

They'd promptly begun walking out of the classroom and had just passed by a large row of lockers, to a much calmer place. Looking around, Sasuke noticed there were only a few students around. Some studying, others resting or chatting quietly. He smirked and sat as Neji spoke once more.

"So how've you been? You barely talked this morning." Shikamaru nodded "I'm betting it has something to do with _him_."

Neji eyes shifted from Shikamaru to Sasuke and he rolled his eyes with a sigh. "You didn't follow my advice did you?" "Advice? What advice?" Shikamaru asked, eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"Not exactly. Naruto _is_ interested in guys right?" Sasuke asked with a pout, half stumped as to why the hell the blonde wasn't attracted to him if it was true, and half curious as to what his tastes would be if it wasn't.

"Well that's what I heard, but I couldn't be sure what your 'idiot' prefers" Neji said, using his friend's preferred nickname for the blonde in question in order to brighten his mood. It seemed to work just a bit as Sasuke chuckled. "I'm still going to win the bet though"

"Okay, even _I_ have to ask. How exactly _do_ you plan to win him over before graduation, when you're so behind." Shikamaru questioned

Neji laughed, "Ah you never know. A lot can happen in five months." This time his friends joined into the laughter and continued onto a different conversation, not noticing the student closing his locker silently, clutching his textbook in anger. Eyes narrowed, he walked away from the spot, to where he'd been helping someone study. The other looked up as he was handed the textbook. "Thanks, this ought to help!" The student's grin fell though, when he saw the anger in his face.

"What's wrong Byers?" He asked as the boy in question sat down. "Nothing. Let's get back to the problem. You need to use this formula" He spoke casually and the ninth grader made a sound of realization before scribbling down the answer, leaving Alexander's mind to wander.

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><p>Classes had ended and Neji Hyuga walked slowly through the loud rush of students passing by him, eager to go home. He adjusted his backpack and brought it to his front as he got to his locker, unzipping it and taking out a textbook. Neji placed the backpack on his shoulder once again and moved to open his locker. He instantly regretted the action because, as soon as the door was ajar, an overwhelming amount of white spattered everywhere, covering everything in sight, bubbles and soap all over the place.<p>

For a moment, he wondered how it could all fit in there. He looked around as the substance spread everywhere and put his book into one of the few clean spaces inside. Ignoring the large crowd behind him, the laughter, and the worried glances, the 12th grader smiled. "Come now, Gaara, I thought we were past this" He spoke softly, only slightly confused as to why he was so happy, but chose not to give it much thought and just enjoy it...

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><p><strong>Well there you have it! Our tenth chapter! Sorry it took a bit longer than expected, but something about it just didn't feel right... So I ended up re-writing this a bunch of times throughout the past few days. BUT TODAY, I saw it and considered just updating it as it was, then I just... started writing like crazy, and added a small but strangely perfect part that tied it all together!<strong>

**This is unbetaed so sorry for any spelling errors by the way! :D Hope to hear your thoughts on this chapter considering it put up a fight before finally being posted.**


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